Yours
by Draven Star
Summary: Leia serves Vader and Amidala, Mara is the Emperor's Hand. The two girls become best friends, which their masters might not like. Vader and Amidala are planning to take over the Empire. LM, HL, VaderAmidala
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any original characters and dialogue from the movies and books. 

Author's note: I use o'clock times, because it's easier for me.

**Yours**

"You're lucky," Leia said, looking down at her chronowatch, seeing that she and Mara had been talking for almost an hour now.

She had noticed Mara when she came into this café. At first, she had decided to leave, but she was surprised when Mara actually said hello to her. They knew each other, of course, since Mara was the Emperor's Hand, and Leia served Darth Vader and Darth Amidala, but the two girls had never talked much or really become friends.

"Why?" Mara asked.

"You have more exciting assignments," Leia said very quietly, even though most of the tables near them were empty. "All I do is spy and follow people. It's boring sometimes. I never have to capture anyone."

"Perhaps your masters like for you to be unseen. You are obviously good at it. I've never heard of you failing them," Mara whispered back.

Leia shrugged. "Do you think it has something to do with me being a girl? Their four other most trusted agents are all men."

"Of course not," Mara assured her. "Darth Amidala is a woman - and Vader trained her, so he obviously doesn't think that girls can't do anything."

"That's true."

"Are you busy tonight?"

"No...why?" Leia briefly considered pretending that she did have to be somewhere, in case Mara happened to be spying on her. She doubted it, since she had never done anything to make Emperor Palpatine angry. Besides, she was a little bored.

"I am following someone, and they are going to see a play tonight. Do you want to come with me?"

"Alright."

"Good. I was thinking of getting a dress to wear tonight, also..."

"I was thinking of going shopping, anyway," Leia said.

Actually, she had not, but she was suddenly glad to have something to do tonight. She lived with her twin brother, who had been unusually busy during the past few weeks. He went out almost every night now. Leia suspected that he had a new girlfriend, but she had not asked yet.

* * *

They went to Leia and Luke's home first, so that Leia could leave her speeder there. The twins, who were now twenty years old, had an apartment. They had first moved to Naboo four years ago, when they decided they were tired of being stuck on their aunt and uncle's farm on Tattooine, but had recently moved to Imperial City. 

As she slowly drove her speeder behind the building, she briefly thought of Obi-Wan Kenobi. She and Luke had met him several months ago, when they still lived on Naboo. They had known he was an old friend of their father's, so at first, they thought he had been sent by Beru and Owen to talk to them. Then, when he told them more about Anakin Skywalker and taught them about the Force, they were sure that their aunt and uncle were not on his side.

Luke was the one who wanted to be trained. Leia had hesitated, and Obi-Wan had not pressured her. She guessed that he and Yoda might try to persuade her later, after Luke had learned some.

But, after less than two months, Luke stopped talking to both of his teachers. He did not say exactly what had happened, but Leia did not care. She had never been very welcoming toward Obi-Wan.

Almost immediately after, the twins moved to a new apartment on Imperial City. Leia was secretly glad - it would be much easier for her to meet with Vader and Amidala, even though she did not enjoy the thought of them being closer to her more often.

"Don't mention our masters," she whispered to Mara once they were inside the elevator. "My brother...doesn't know."

"You've never told him?"

"I don't think that my masters know I have a brother, and I don't want them to hurt him."

"I understand," Mara replied. "Where do your parents live?"

"They died when we were babies. We used to live with our aunt and uncle," Leia said.

The elevator stopped, and the doors opened a moment later. The building was small - only two floors. Leia and Luke's apartment was the last one on the second floor.

* * *

Luke was in the living room when they came inside. He had left early yesterday evening, and had not been home when Leia left earlier this morning. 

"Hello," Leia said, giving him a quick hug. "Did you get any sleep last night?"

He leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "Shouldn't you introduce me to your friend?"

"Mara, this is my brother, Luke," Leia said.

She looked at Mara. Her possible new friend - she was going to be careful before trusting Mara too much - stared at Luke for a second. She seemed almost nervous. She slowly extended her hand to him.

"Nice to meet you," he said, shaking her hand.

"You, too," she replied quietly.

"Are you alright?" Leia asked, looking at her.

"Yes," she answered. "We had better go. I have a few errands to run later, before we go to the play."

"Alright." Leia looked at Luke. "We are going to see a play tonight. Do you want to come?"

"I don't have a third ticket," Mara told her, "and they're all sold out now."

"It's fine," Luke said. "I have to go somewhere."

"I'm not surprised," Leia said, sounding just a little annoyed. "I'll be right back."

She left the living room and went down the short hallway to her bedroom. Luke waited until he heard her door open, then close. He looked at Mara.

"She doesn't know that I joined Vader and Amidala," he said. "If you tell her that, or that they are our parents, I will kill you."

"Do you know how angry my master would be?" she whispered.

Luke did not have time to reply, since they heard Leia's bedroom door open again. Mara knew he was not threatened at all, though. He had been Vader's apprentice for almost six months now. Any trace of nervousness that he had ever had around the Emperor was long gone.

"Are you ready?" Leia asked as she came back into the living room.

"Yes," Mara answered. "It was nice meeting you, Luke. I'm sorry that I can't get a third ticket for the play."

"I don't mind. Have fun."

* * *

Author's note: Vader and Amidala will be in the next chapter. I hope some of you like this. 


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

As they got inside Mara's speeder, Leia started to feel more at ease, even though she was still going to be careful. She was not going to find many other girls who also worked for Sith, so she decided to enjoy the possibility of having a friend who could understand.

She didn't think that Luke _wouldn't_ understand, and she really wanted to tell him who she worked for, since he was her closest friend. But she was wanted to protect him from Darth Vader and Darth Amidala, as she had told Mara, and she was not sure how he would react to her serving the man who had killed their parents.

Leia had almost cried when Obi-Wan told her and Luke that Vader had murdered Anakin and Padmé, but she was sure that that her mother and father would understand that she had not chosen to work for the Sith.

_And_, she thought as Mara started the speeder, _why should I completely trust Obi-Wan? He's probably too scared to go face Vader and Amidala himself, so he wanted to convince Luke and I to do it for him. Some friend to our father he is_.

"Who else lives in your building?" Mara asked.

"We don't know many of the other residents," Leia answered. "Right next to us is a guy named Han. I think he's around our age, maybe a little older. Luke has talked to him a few times."

"Oh," Mara said. "Thank you for coming with me tonight."

"Of course. I feel lonely sometimes."

"So do I."

"Do you have any siblings?" Leia asked.

"No."

"A boyfriend?"

"No," said Mara. "What about you?"

"No," Leia answered.

Mara slowed down a little to let a dark red speeder get in front of them. She wondered if Luke might show up at the theater tonight, or tell Leia that he had changed his mind, even though he had said earlier that he couldn't come. Mara would not be surprised, but she was not going to let him bother her. Her master would be furious if he tried to harm her.

She glanced at Leia for a second. The Emperor did not know that Leia was Luke's sister, or at least, he acted as if he did not. Last month, Palpatine had tried to hint to Darth Amidala that Vader was romantically involved with Leia. That obviously had not worked.

_So, maybe he does know that Leia is their daughter_, Mara thought, _but he wants them to think that he doesn't know_.

Either way, Mara had decided not to say anything for now. Her master had not actually asked her if she knew any secrets about Leia, so she was not really being disloyal, was she? If he wanted to hear what she had to say about Leia, he would ask her.

"Have you been doing this as long as I have?" Leia asked. "Three years?"

"Four years - since I was fifteen," Mara answered. She slowed the speeder again and parked it beside a clothing store. "I am sorry that we have not talked much before."

"Me, too."

* * *

Amidala came over not long after Leia and Mara left. She always had a cloak on whenever she was at one of the bases, or on one of the Star Destroyers. Leia would not recognize her without them, so she was not worried about running into her daughter. 

"Hello," she said, hugging her son. "Is Leia home?"

"She went somewhere with Mara," Luke answered as they walked into the living room.

"Mara? Why?"

"They probably ran into each other somewhere. They are going to a play tonight."

"Oh," Amidala said.

They heard the front door open again. Luke knew it was his father, since Leia would probably not be back already.

Amidala sat down on the couch, glancing at a picture of Leia that was on the table beside the couch. It showed her and Beru with a baby bantha at a petting zoo on Alderaan.

Amidala remembered them going on that trip. She and Vader had spied on Owen, Beru, and the twins often. During all the times they had gone to Tattooine, they had never sensed Obi-Wan's presence, making them guess that he had decided not to live there.

She looked up at Vader as he and Luke sat beside her, remembering how depressed she - Padmé had been when the twins were born. Before Obi-Wan took her to the doctor, she had already decided that she wanted to take Vader's offer to rule the Empire with him, but of course, she said nothing.

The doctors had thought it would be best to sedate her and operate, instead of letting her go into labor. By the time she had woken up, Obi-Wan had already taken the babies and left for Tattooine. Bail Organa assured her that she could visit them once the doctors said she was healthy enough to leave, and he even offered to give her a mansion on Alderaan.

Padmé thanked him with fake gratitude. She left the hospital two days later, and didn't contact Bail and his wife as she had promised.

"Why is she going with Mara?" Vader was asking. Amidala moved closer to him and rested her hand on his arm.

"Perhaps Mara just wanted someone to go with," she suggested before Luke could answer. "She can't have many other friends who...have the same job as her."

"Should Ijoin them?" Luke asked.

"Yes," Vader said.

Amidala did not argue, since she did not completely trust Mara, either, but she did not hate the girl. When she and Vader took over the Empire, she wanted to give Mara a chance to become loyal to them.

They left a little more than an hour later, since they were going back to their house on Yavin Three. They had recently purchased the house next door to theirs. Soon, Luke was going to talk to his sister about moving to the Yavin system.

* * *

Leia came back sooner than expected. She walked right past her parents as she was entering the building, but of course, she didn't recognize Vader without his armor, or recognize Amidala's face. She gave them a small, polite smile as she passed them, but didn't say anything. 

"Do you think she can possibly sense who we are, or having a feeling about us?" Amidala softly asked her husband. She slid her hand inside his, then raised his hand to her mouth and kissed it.

"No. She has no training," he answered.

Anakin had been the first person to tell Padmé that she was Force-strong. He had pointed out that she was already fourteen when Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon met her - too old for any Jedi to think about training her, which was probably why neither of them had said anything.

"I love you," Amidala said. She suddenly remembered something. "Did we tell Leia to go to the base opening?"

"Yes."

"Mara will probably be going to that." Amidala paused. "I don't want to...bother her, unless we are sure that she is going to be a threat. Leia does not seem to have many friends."

* * *

"Luke?" Leia called as she came inside. She found him in the living room. "We aren't going tonight." 

While they were out, Mara had gotten a call from her master, telling her not to follow the person that was going to be at the play tonight. She was relieved. She did not feel like following someone around all night. Leia understood that.

"Why not?" Luke asked.

"We changedour minds," said Leia, knowing that that didn't sound very convincing. "But Mara will be here later. I invited her to stay with us tonight, if you don't mind."

"Of course not. Is something wrong?"

"No. I just wanted to have a friend over," Leia said, "since you'll probably go somewherelater and come back tomorrow evening."

Luke pretended to be annoyed. "What about your appointments and errands that you don't always explain?"

Leia sighed. "Not now, please. If you aren't busy tonight, you can go to dinner with Mara and I."

"I will."

Leia started to go over to the hallway, but stopped when she thought of something.

"I think you would like Mara if you were a little nicer to her," she said, looking at Luke. "She is nineteen, and she doesn't have a boyfriend."

"Don't think about it, Leia," he said, even though he would not mind if she tried.

Leia smiled at him and left the room.

* * *

Mara came over that evening. As she buzzed the apartment's door, she hoped that Luke was not home. She sighed when he answered the door. 

He was secretly happy to see her, since he had been interested in her for almost a month now. So far, though, he hadconcealed his feelings so well that only his father knew. It was impossible for him to hide anything from Vader. Even if he could, he would not even think of trying it. He loved and admired his father.

"Hello," Mara said as he let her inside. She was wearing a long-sleeved black dress that stopped a little above her knees. "Where is Leia?"

"She is getting dressed," Luke answered.

"I am _not_ spying on her, just to let you know," Mara replied, just before they heard Leia's door open.

Luke sensed that she was not lying, so he left her alone for now.


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

When they reached the restaurant, Leia went to the refresher for a moment. Once she was out of sight, Mara glanced at Luke and deliberately inched her chair a little further away from him.

He focused on his feelings for her, intentionally letting her sense them. She stared at him for a second, surprised, then turned on her comlink and pretended to be messing with it. She was relieved when Leia came back a moment later, before Luke said anything.

"Are you alright?" Leia asked as she sat down.

"Yes," Mara said, smiling faintly. She did not know what to think about Luke, but she wanted to try her best to act normal. Leia seemed to be one of those rare Force-strong people that were already sensitive to feelings and sometimes dishonesty, even without any training. The Emperor had pointed it out to Mara the other day.

Leia looked at her brother for a second, then glanced down at the menu on the table in front of her.

* * *

Amidala was sitting in a warm bath, inside her and Vader's bathroom. Their house was not huge, just two stories, but they had also bought a few miles of the forest and fields around it. They had no nearby neighbors, and the mountains in the distance could be reached in half a day's walk. 

Amidala loved it. To her, it was the first real home that she and Vader - or Padmé and Anakin - ever had. Padmé's old apartment had been picked out by Dormé and some security officers. She could never do much decorating, since she traveled a lot, or she was encouraged to move when there were threats or assassination attempts against Senators that she was friends with.

After a few more minutes, she got of the tub and and dried herself off with a towel, then put a red bathrobe on. She went into the bedroom, finding Vader on the couch, and sat down beside him.

"Has Luke called?" she asked him, nuzzling her face against his arm.

"No," he answered, lifting his arm so that she could snuggle closer to him.

She was quiet for a long moment, then said, "I think he is hiding something. I know that sounds very unusual for him, but I am sure that I feel it."

"He is interested in Mara," Vader revealed, without feeling bad - Luke had already mentioned that he did not care if his mother knew.

"What? Why wouldn't he tell me?"

"Because the three of us are already keeping one secret from the Emperor."

Amidala nodded, thinking of Leia. She remembered telling Obi-Wan, while she was in labor, what she wanted the babies' names to be. She had not expected him to tell Owen and Beru. She thought that he wanted to honor Anakin and Padmé's memory by keeping the names they had chosen.

"What do you think of Mara?" she asked Vader.

"We will let Luke take her away from the Emperor," he answered.

* * *

Dinner was a little awkward for Leia. She could not shake the feeling that Mara was uneasy about something - perhaps she liked Luke, and was nervous about being around him. Leia smiled to herself when she thought that. 

When they returned the apartment, Luke said he had to go somewhere.

"Where?" Leia asked, not really expecting to get an answer.

"An errand I forgot earlier," he replied. "I will be back soon."

His sister just nodded, most likely thinking that she could not yell at him for not explaining, since she did not always explain her "appointments" and "errands".

He kissed her forehead, then politely kissed Mara's cheek. "It was nice to meet you again, Mara."

"Thank you," she said, sounding as if she were in deep thought about something. She started to give him an irritated glare, but he would sense that she was not completely annoyed.

_I'm not?_ she thought. Looking at Leia, she asked, "Can I see your bedroom?"

"Yes," she answered. Mara followed her to the hallway.

* * *

Once they were inside her room, Leia smiled at her new friend. "I knew it." 

"What?" Mara asked, picking up a stuffed animal from the table beside the couch. It was a taun-taun, wearing a pink collar that said Happy Valentine's Day. "I thought you didn't have a boyfriend."

"Luke gave me that," Leia said. She smiled again. "Do you like him?"

Mara just shrugged.


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

Mara Jade soon began to think of Leia Skywalker as a friend. She studied her carefully, but could not get any hint that Leia might be spying on her for Darth Vader and Darth Amidala. She hoped that later, she wouldn't regret trusting the other girl so easily. She knew that her new friend probably wondered if _she_ was spying, but she couldn't blame her.

By the time they had watched one holomovie and started another, both of them felt more at ease. Mara was tempted to turn her comlink completely off, so that she really _wouldn't_ know if her master tried to contact her...but of course, she couldn't do that. She wouldn't be able to lie to him if he happened to ask why she had not answered.

_And I wouldn't lie to him even if he could not sense dishonesty_, she reminded herself. She glanced at the small chrono on the table beside Leia's couch. Luke was still not back. It had been over two hours since he left.

"Where do you think your brother went?" she asked Leia, although she wouldn't care if Luke decided to stay out the whole night. She did not like the uneasy, almost nervous feeling she had had around him earlier. She was not going to let him intimidate her again.

Leia just shrugged and went over to her closet. She pulled a light yellow sweater over the sleeveless white shirt she was wearing. She was about to suggest that maybe Luke had a date, but she did not want to discourage Mara from being interested in him.

Mara glanced at the movie. It was the same movie she had seen at a theater one afternoon, on the day that she first met the Emperor.

"How did Lord Vader and Lady Amidala convince you to join them?" she asked Leia.

"Convince? I didn't have a choice. Did you?"

"Yes," Mara said. She paused. "Well, no. My master probably would have made me join him if I had not agreed to on my own."

"I see," Leia replied as she sat down on the couch. "Can I ask why you _wanted _to join him?"

Mara nodded, as if she were glad to have to someone to tell her story to. "I told you earlier that my real parents are dead."

"Yes. You lived with your cousins?"

"I did. The Emperor told me that he had been good friends with my parents before they died, and that they had been killed by a Jedi."

"No offense," said Leia, "but did you actually believe him?"

"Not at first," Mara answered, not sounding annoyed at all. "But when we talked, he mentioned some things about my parents that I knew were true, since my cousins had told me about them."

"How did you meet him?"

"My cousins and I went to one an event that he was at one night," Mara explained. "They wanted me to go because they sort of knew the captain from one of the bigger Star Destroyers. He has a son that was seventeen then - I was fifteen - and they wanted me to meet him. They probably thought it would be nice if we began dating and got married in a few years."

Leia nodded. "Did you like him?"

"A little, but I haven't talked to him since that night. I don't really care."

"Oh. Go on."

"His father came over to us while we were talking, and said that the Emperor wanted to see me."

"I would have been scared," Leia said.

"I was," Mara replied.

"Didn't you think it was odd that he was supposedly close friends with your parents, if you hadn't met him before?"

"Of course. He told me that my cousins probably hadn't mentioned him to me because they were didn't like the idea of me associating with him. I thought that made sense, and after he said things about my parents that I knew, I started to believe him."

Leia nodded again. "I probably would have, too, but you believed that a Jedi killed your parents?"

"I was a baby when they died, and I am only a year younger than you and Luke," Mara pointed out. "Around that time, Lord Vader and Lady Amidala were still hunting the rest of the Jedi. There are probably a few Jedi left today."

"That's true," Leia said, thinking of Obi-Wan Kenobi. She did not like him much, but since he had not done anything to hurt her, she would feel bad about reporting him to Vader and Amidala.

Mara changed the subject. "Perhaps your masters will want to train you - in the Force, I mean."

"I doubt it. They don't seem to think I can do much, or else I would get to do something besides follow people and sneak around."

Mara just shrugged. She knew she should not be discussing the idea of Leia's masters training her - they should not dare to teach her without the Emperor's permission.

They were both quiet for a moment, until Leia suggested getting ice cream. As they entered the kitchen, they heard the front door open. Quickly, Mara concentrated on Luke, hoping she could mentally talk to him. She had never tried to before.

_Leave me alone_, she said.

She felt the mental connection with him, but he ignored her and said nothing.

"Welcome back," Leia said to her brother when he came into the kitchen. "We were about to get ice cream. Would you like some?"

"No," Luke answered. "I'm going to bed. I hope you don't mind."

"Good night," Mara said, smiling faintly. "Leia and I were talking about going shopping tomorrow, and we'releaving early in the morning. I guess we won't see you."

"We're going to the parts store, too, to get the paint for that scratch on my speeder," Leia added. "Do you want to go with us, Luke?"

_Damn it_, Mara thought.

"Don't worry about it. I'll get the paint for you," Luke answered. "Good night."

"Thanks," his sister replied.

"Good night, Mara said again, relieved, although she wondered why he wasn't taking the opportunity to bother her. Perhaps he had to meet with his parents. But she doubted that he would be, since Leia had to meet with Vader and Amidala tomorrow at noon, on the _Executor_. Luke would not go there at the same time as his sister and risk having her seeing him.

As soon as he went back to his bedroom, Leia smiled at Mara, but didn't say anything.


	5. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

Leia was in an almost great mood when she went to the _Executor_ the next day. She was always nervous when she had to meet with her masters, but now that she was friends with Mara Jade, she could at least look foward to possibly seeing her here. The Emperor never came here himself, but he sometimes sent Mara to give Vader and Amidala messages.

There was a private landing area that only Leia, as far as she knew, used for her light purple ship. She did not see Mara's ship there, but it was possible that her friend used a different landing area.

Meanwhile, Darth Amidala was waiting inside one of her and Darth Vader's private chambers; the large main one with a couple of doors that led to other rooms. Vader was in one of the main command areas. Sometimes he and Amidala liked to give Leia a break and let her talk to just one of them, even though they had never sensed that it made her feel better.

Amidala was wearing a black cloak, with the hood over her head, and a black cloth covered the lower part of her face, under her nose. She wore blue eye contacts. She used make-up to make her face a bit more tan, and used an eyeliner pencil to make her eyebrows black, which hopefully made Leia assume that her hair was black, too.

"My Lady," Leia said when she entered the room. She was wearing white pants and a long-sleeved white shirt.

She knelt down and bowed her head. Amidala looked at her for a second, wanting to give her a hug, but Leia would definately think was strange.

"Get up," she said.

Leia stood.

"I want you to watch a smuggler for me," Amidala told her, "a human man named Han Solo. I believe he is around your age, perhaps a little older. I have heard that he usually has a Wookie with him, who may be his partner."

_Han?_ Leia thought. The man who lived in the aparment _right next to_ her and Luke's - who she had once seen a Wookie with. She wondered if this was not really an important task at all, but some kind of subtle warning from her masters, telling her that they knew she had a brother, and they knew where she and Luke lived...

"Keep an eye on him until I tell you what to do next," Amidala added.

Leia was quiet for a second, then finally said, "Oh...yes, My Lady."

"Go. I will contact you tomorrow evening to hear what you have learned about him."

"Yes, My Lady," Leia said again, trembling now.

She turned and left, desperate to get home as soon as possible and see that Luke was okay.

She continued trembling as she made her way back to the landing area, hoping she would not run into Vader. She let out a heavy sigh of relief when she reached her ship without seeing him anywhere. Then she realized that she had not bowed to Amidala before leaving. Hopefully the Sith Lady was not in an irritable mood that would make her remember that.

Leia sighed again and began starting her ship.

* * *

When she entered the apartment, Luke was standing near the front door, talking to someone on his comlink. He suddenly turned it off as Leia stepped inside, without saying else anything to whoever it was.

Leia didn't bother to wonder why he had done that. She hugged him tightly. Tears were already starting to slide down her cheeks.

"What is it?" Luke demanded, stroking her hair. "What happened?"

She was quiet, trying to think of something to say.

Luke actually knew what was wrong. His mother had just called him, after realizing that Leia must be very worried about the fact that her masters knew of the person who lived in the apartment right next to her and her brother's.

"Fine," Luke said more softly, letting go of his sister. "I'm always here if you decide to tell me."

She nodded, relieved, and wiped her cheeks. "Thank you."

"I invited a friend to come over tomorrow morning," Luke said. "She will be here around eight."

"_She_?" Leia smiled.

"She and her husband."

"Oh."

"We are going to a speeder show," Luke added. "Do you want to come with us?"

Leia definately wanted to, but she needed to start watching Han so that she had something to report when Darth Amidala contacted her tomorrow evening.

"No," she answered.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Leia replied.

"Why don't you ask Mara to come over, so you won't be lonely?" Luke suggested.

"I might."


	6. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

Mara Jade's apartment was only about half-an-hour away from Luke and Leia's. She had just moved into it last month. It only had one bedroom - her old place had three, and a larger living room - but the owners, a Twi'lek couple, were very nice, and Mara and the other tennants had a small hangar for their ships.

Before, she had lived a few hours away, and had been able to see the Emperor's private property from her balcony. As much as she respected her master, she had gotten tired of having the creepy feeling that he might have someone watching her. Of course, he still could, but she felt more comfortable having a place that wasn't so close to him.

The sun was setting when she came home, after following yet another bounty hounter around for a few hours. Leia had called her comlink earlier and invited her to come over tomorrow morning. After Mara heard that Luke was going to be at a speeder show with two of his friends - meaning he wouldn't be around to bother her - she said yes.

She was surprised that he liked her, and she admitted that she was a little curious. His parents, or at least Vader, certainly knew that he was interested in her. Luke would never consider hiding anything from his father, and Mara doubted that she was important enough to make him try to.

But Vader and Amidala surely didn't approve of this. Everyone suspected that they wanted to take over the Empire, and since Mara was the Emperor's hand, why wouldn't they want to kill her, too? Then again, maybe they thought she would be wonderful for Luke, since she was also a Sith - in a way. The Emperor had trained her, but never actually referred to her as a Sith.

She sighed and forgot about it for now. As she punched in the security code on the pad beside her apartment door, locking it, her cat walked up to her and rubbed against her leg. Star's short fur was completely white, and she had green eyes. Mara had bought her as a kitten a year ago, when she was spying on a few Neimoidians on Alderaan.

She picked up Star and scratched behind each of her ears for a second, then set her down. Her comlink suddenly started beeping. She turned it on.

"Hello?"

"Mara," Luke said.

"How do you know my comlink number?" she demanded as she walked into the living room. Star followed her.

"I have known it for a while."

Mara did not bother trying to ask how he had gotten it. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to remind you not to reveal anything to Leia about me, or our parents."

"I won't, but don't try to scare me. Your parents know how furious my master would be if any of you harmed me."

"Your master tries to turn me against my parents," Luke replied. "If he plans for _me_ to be his apprentice, do you think he cares whether he has you or not?"

He did make a good point, which annoyed Mara even more.

"If you like me so much," she said calmly, "why do you keep threatening me?"

She turned off her comlink before he could reply, and just tossed it to the floor. It startled Star. She ran into the bedroom.

"Sorry," Mara called. She sighed and went to the bathroom to take a shower.

* * *

Vader and Amidala were staying on Imperial City for the night, inside their own ship. They preferred it instead of getting an apartment here or renting a hotel room. It had a small bedroom, refresher, kitchen area, and a table booth that could sit three people on either side. 

One thing that Amidala soon realized, after joining Vader, was how much she liked piloting. She hadn't gotten many chances to before, since she was a queen and then a senator. Whenever she suggested flying something herself, or wanted to watch the pilots, her guards or handmaidens usually didn't think it was a good idea.

"Do you really think Luke can take Mara away from the Emperor?" she asked Vader. They were sitting at the table. She had a cup of hot chocolate that she had gotten from a drink bar as they were walking to the landing lot where their ship was.

"Yes," Vader answered. "If he cannot, he will capture her after we take over, or kill her."

"I don't think he could kill her. But I do think he would trap her until she cooperates."

"I would have done the same if you had not come to me on your own."

"I thought you might, but I did _want_ to join you." Amidala took a sip of her hot chocolate, then reached across the table. Vader rested his hand on her arm.

"Be careful of what you say to Leia tomorrow. She will notice small details," he said. He was extremely proud of his daughter. She was their best spy.

"I know. Maybe you shouldn't wear any black tomorrow. She might realize that you are as tall as Darth Vader and you are wearing black."

"She knows that Darth Vader is not the only tall person in the galaxy."

"That's true," Amidala replied. "I'm a little tired. Do you mind if I go to bed?"

"I will join you."

* * *

Leia and Luke both woke up early the next morning, so they had breakfast together for the first time in several days. 

At first, Leia was quiet. She was thinking of how badly she wanted to tell her brother about Vader and Amidala. But as always, she changed her mind. She doubted that he would believe her unless she introduced him to her masters, and then they would know that she had a brother, and Luke would hate her because she served Vader, who had killed their parents.

"Do you still practice everything that Obi-Wan taught you?" she asked.

"Yes," Luke answered.

"Would you start to teach me sometime?"

"Do you want me to?"

"Yes," Leia said. She thought some of the Jedi skills could be very useful, since she was a spy. But she wasn't sure if it was a good idea, either. If her masters somehow found out what she had learned and questioned her, she would have to tell them about Luke.

"I will be glad to," Luke told her. Of course, he would be training her as a Sith, not a Jedi.

"Thank you," she replied. She paused. "Can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"Do you believe everything that Obi-Wan told us?"

"Why do you ask?"

Leia shrugged. "I don't know. You suddenly stopped talking to him and Yoda. Did they do something to make you angry?"

"No. I just finished my training. I talk to them sometimes," Luke lied.

"Oh."

"Why did they bother you?"

Leia ate a piece of the light green fruit on her plate. "Well...to start with, Yoda and Obi-Wan are both powerful Jedi Masters. Why can't they face Darth Vader and Darth Amidala themselves?"

"They need new Jedi if they are going to rebuild the Jedi Order, and we are Anakin Skywalker's children," Luke said, wanting to change the subject. "If you and Mara want to come to the speeder show with us, you can."

"We might go see a movie," Leia said, still thinking. She had wondered before what her masters thought about her last name being Skywalker, the same as Anakin's. Perhaps they just didn'tcare, or they thought she might not know that her father had been a Jedi. But if they did not care to question her about it, she was fine with that.

* * *

Mara came over first. Leia let her inside, and they went into the living room. The two of them were actually going to stay here for now. Leia had told her friend that she had to watch Han Solo. She knew that she shouldn't have, though. She doubted that her masters would be happy with her discussing her assignments with Mara. 

"Luke's friends are coming over," she said, "but they have to go to the speeder show, so they won't be here long."

"Alright," Mara said. She was was wearing a white skirt that stopped above her knees, and a long-sleeved white shirt. "I saw Han leaving."

"Great," Leia muttered. "I hope he won't be gone long, so that we can follow him the next time he leaves."

Mara nodded as Luke entered the living room.

"Good morning," she told him nicely. Of course, she was not going to tell Leia that he had called her last night.

"It is nice to see you," he replied, meaning it.

She just smiled. He sensed how irritated she was, and uncomfortable. She probably couldn't wait for him to leave. For a second, he almost felt sorry for the way he had spoken to her last night, but he _had_ wanted to point out that she wasn't as important to the Emperor as she thought she was. It might make her more willing to join Luke later.

"Are you busy later?" Leia asked her brother.

"No," he answered.

"Neither is Mara."

"I have to take my cat to the vet," Mara lied. She actually had to meet with her master.

"Oh," Leia said, remembering. "I'm going to go change. I don't like this shirt."

After she went back to her bedroom, there was a buzz from the front door. Luke went to answer it. Mara followed him, for some reason. She was not very surprised when she saw who it was. She had seen them without their disguises before.

Leia reappeared, wearing black pants and a short-sleeved, light blue shirt that said NABOO LAKE COUNTRY in green letters, with a picture of a lake underneath.

"This is my sister," Luke said to Vader and Amidala, "and her friend, Mara."

"It's nice to meet you," Amidala said, shaking Leia's hand. Amidala was also wearing a short-sleeved Naboo shirt - a white one from a gift shop in Theed - with black pants.

When she shook Mara's hand, she lightly scratched the girl's palm with her thumb's nail and mentally said, _If you tell her anything, Vader and I will kill you. I don't care if the Emperor is watching_.

Mara made a fake smile, but did not respond. She did not want Vader, Amidala, and Luke to think that they could bully her, but she also knew that she had no chance against the three of them, and her master was nowhere around right now.

"I'm Jaina," Amidala said to Leia, "and this is my husband, Jacen."

"Hello," Leia said to Jacen. He was wearing dark brown pants and a sleeveless white shirt. He was muscular and strong-looking, like Luke, but a little taller. For some reason, Leia felt a little uncomfortable as he shook her hand.

"Hello," he replied.

"Do you like going to Naboo?" Amidala asked Leia.

"Yes," she answered.

"We should go," Luke said. "We will be back later, Leia."

"Alright," she said. "Have fun."

* * *

Later that afternoon, when Luke and his friends returned, Leia was in her bedroom, trying not cry. Han was still not back from wherever he went, and she had no idea how to track him. Darth Amidala was going to contact her later, to hear what she had learned about the smuggler. Her only other option was to talk to Luke - he and Han had talked a few times. But she couldn't do that until after Jacen and Jaina left. 

She let out a heavy sigh, then left her room. She found everyone standing in the living room.

"Hello, Leia," Jaina said. "Where is Mara?"

"She left earlier. Did you guys see any speeders that you like?"

"Several," Luke answered. "Is something wrong?"

"No," his sister said. "Do you know if Han is home? I wanted to ask him something."

"He told me that he is going to Yavin Two for a few days."

"Great," Leia muttered.

Amidala guessed that she had not been able to watch Han earlier, but she was not angry. She could sense how upset her daughter was, and was very tempted to reveal who she was, just so she could tell Leia that she did not have to worry about the assignment.

"Is he your boyfriend, Leia?" she asked.

"No," Luke said.

Leia smiled. "My brother is very protective."

"I see," Jaina replied as Jacen slid his arms around her waist. "We were going to get coffee somewhere. Will you come with us?"

Leia was about to say no, since she might miss Darth Amidala's call - but then, she might have some more time to talk to Luke later, before Amidala called again.

"Alright," she said. "I'm going to go get a coat."

* * *

Sorry that this chapter didn't have much action, next one will be better. 


	7. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

Leia was still nervous as she, Luke, Jaina, and Jacen got into Luke's speeder. She sat in the back seat, with Jaina, feeling worse. She hoped that Darth Amidala would not try to contact her in the next couple of hours, before she could talk to Luke and get _some_ information on Han. And of course, her brother would want to know why she was so interested in Han all of a sudden.

"Are you alright?" Jaina asked quietly. She was sitting behind Jacen. She reached foward and rested her hand on his shoulder.

"Yes," Leia answered, feeling a bit lonely as she looked at the couple. She thought of Brryan, the Twi'lek who had been her last boyfriend. They had been together for four months, before Brryan suddenly moved to Yavin Five. Leia had thought that they were in love, but now she was not sure.

"Luke told me that you used to live on Naboo," said Jaina.

"We did," Leia replied. "We moved here a few months ago. But we're thinking of getting a cottage in the Lake Country."

"Jacen and I were talking about going there in a few days. You and Luke should come with us. Mara, too."

"That would be fun," Leia said, although she could never plan any vacations. She didn't know when her masters would need her.

Although she sometimes missed having freedom, she was not sure if she wanted Vader and Amidala to leave her alone. Whenever she imagined them permanently dismissing her from her job, and finding someone else instead, she had a strong feeling of jealousy, even anger. She did not understand it. Sometimes she wondered if she was somehow becoming evil, but that seemed ridiculous. She had never harmed or killed anyone, but then again, she had indirectly harmed the people she had tracked down for her masters.

_But Lord Vader or Lady Amidala would kill me if I didn't_, she thought, _or hurt my brother, if they know about him_.

She sighed and tried not think about it. For now, she had to focus on learning more about Han.

* * *

When they went inside a café, they took two small tables that were right beside each other. Luke sat with Jaina, so Leia had to sit with Jacen.

He looked at her for a second, seeming as if he was detecting that she felt uncomfortable around him. Leia pretended to ignore him. She looked over at her brother.

"Luke, where did you say that Han went?" she asked, even though she remembered.

"Why do you need to know?" he asked.

Jaina smiled faintly.

"Please," Leia said.

"Yavin Two," Luke answered.

One of the waitresses, a black-haired human girl, came over to them. Luke and Jacen didn't order anything. Leia asked for a vanilla coffee, and Jaina ordered a caramel one.

Leia noticed that Jaina was wearing a silver necklace - it had been mostly tucked under shirt earlier. On it was a silver heart that had DV engraved in the center. Jaina suddenly realized that it was showing, and hid it under her shirt again.

"Luke says that you own a parts store on Tattooine," Jacen said to Leia.

"Yes. We own it with our friend and his wife," she replied. They actually had two speeder parts stores now. So far, Beru and Owen did not know about that. Even when there was one store, it had done well enough for the twins to live on their own.

"I told Leia that we should go to the Lake Country on Naboo together," Jaina said. "Mara can come, too, if she wants."

"I'll ask her," Leia said.

* * *

Darth Amidala did not call Leia that night, and Leia saw on her comlink that no one had tried to call earlier. She was extremely relieved. She talked to Luke and learned a few things about Han - he was twenty-five years old and had lived on Imperial City for a couple of years. His Wookie friend, Chewbacca, actually owed him a life debt, but Luke didn't know why, and also didn't seem to know that Han was a smuggler.

* * *

The next afternoon, Mara Jade came home after getting lunch with Leia. Leia had mentioned going to the Lake Country, but both of them had decided to come up with an excuse for not going, since their masters might contact them.

After locking her apartment's door, she suddenly realized that something was wrong. Usually, Star came running up to her as soon as she came inside.

She went inside the kitchen, still not seeing the cat anywhere, but noticed that Star had eaten all of the food in her dish. Mara looked in the bedroom, bathroom, and living room. She was about look in the closet when there was a buzz from the door.

She guessed it was Luke before she answered it. It _was_ him, and he was holding her cat.

"What are you doing?" she demanded angrily, not wanting to sound worried. Somehow, he had gotten the security code to her apartment.

"May I come in?" he asked. Star rubbed her head against his chest and purred.

"Why didn't you just let yourself in? Give me my cat."

"We could come back later."

Mara sighed and stepped aside, letting him enter, then closed the door again.

"What do you want?" she asked in a nicer tone, wanting to be polite while he was still holding her cat.

Luke petted the top of Star's head. "Did you meet with the Emperor yesterday?"

"Yes."

"About what?"

"That's not really your business."

"I need to know if it was anything about my sister," Luke said. He reached inside his cloak with one hand and took out his lightsaber. "Leia is your friend now. I know you understand."

"Yes, but my master would not be pleased if I discussed our meeting with you," Mara replied, starting to feel nervous.

Luke turned on the lightsaber and held the red blade near Star, but not close enough to scare her yet. She meowed and rubbed her head against his chest again.

"Don't," Mara said.

Luke moved the blade closer to Star, near one of her paws. She fidgeted, but he managed to hold her.

"_Stop_!" Mara insisted, feeling tears form in her eyes. She briefly thought of rushing foward, but he would probably use the lightsaber blade to block her. She suddenly hated him, a lot, and didn't care if he had feelings for her.

Luke moved the blade a little closer to Star's paw. She fidgeted again and hissed.

"My master _didn't mention_ your sister _at all_!" Mara yelled. "I was just telling him about a bounty hunter I was following!"

Sensing that she wasn't lying, Luke turned off his lightsaber. He gently set Star down on the floor. She hissed at him again. Mara tried to pick her up, but she hissed at her, too, and ran into the kitchen area.

"Anything else?" Mara asked Luke. A couple of tears had slid down her cheeks.

"No," he told her. He had not expected to make her cry. "Do not tell the Emperor about this."

"I won't," she said - only because she thought that her master would laugh.

Luke opened the door himself, since he knew the security code, and left. Mara wiped her face and went into the kitchen.

* * *

By the next morning, Star had calmed down. Mara was afraid to leave her, but she had invited Leia to go eat breakfast and then go shopping, if neither of them were contacted by their masters.

Amidala called Leia's comlink, so Mara decided to go to the speeder show, since today was the last day that it was here. She went home first, wanting to change clothes.

When she entered the living room, she found a large arrangement of flowers on the coffee table in front of the couch. And, when she picked up Star, she saw that her cat was wearing a new, light pink collar, studded with diamonds.

She sighed and took the collar off of Star, and tossed it inside a drawer in the kitchen. Then she threw the flowers away. After re-filling Star's water bowl, she left.

* * *

Author's note: More Vader/Amidala will be in the next chapter, sorry that there wasn't a lot in this one.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

Leia was more nervous than usual when she arrived on the _Executor_. She assumed that Darth Amidala was going to want her report on Han Solo. Maybeshe would reveal that she knew Han lived in the apartment right next to Leia's, and that she knew Leia had a brother.

For now,Leia tried to calm down. Her masters would probably sense that something was bothering her - other than being terrified of them, as usual - and if they were curious enough to ask what it was, she wouldn't be able to lie.

As she neared the room in their chambers where they usually met with her, she heard Vader's breathing, but he had left by the time she entered the room.

Today, Amidala had used some make-up to add a small fake, reddish cut near her right eye. Even though her face was half-covered and she was wearing her eye contacts, and used powder to make her skin a little more tan, she wanted to make sure that Leia wasn't reminded of "Jaina", who she had met just yesterday.

Leia knelt down in front of her.

"Rise," Amidala said almost immediately, since Luke was going to be here in less than an hour. She suddenly realized that she did nothing to change her voice, and her daughter might recognize that it sounded similar to Jaina's.

"Leia," she said, "do you think that you could hide anything from Lord Vader and I?"

"No, My Lady," she answered, more frightened now. They knew about Luke.

"Good. Tell me about Mara Jade."

"There is nothing much to tell you...we are friends."

Amidala was quiet at first. She seemed to be in a nice, forgiving mood for a moment, but Leia was not sure.

"This will not surprise you, Leia," she said, "but the Emperor may think your friendship with her could be useful, and I am sure he has noticed that you are an excellent spy. But Vader and I do not have to be concerned about you staying loyal to us, do we?"

"No!" Leia said, a little more firmly than Amidala had expected.

"Good," she replied. "I would hate it if we had to...get rid of our favorite agent because she wanted to work for someone else. Now, go. Continue watching Han."

Leia bowed her head, then turned and left.

* * *

As she began flying back to Imperial City, she was surprised at the compliments she had gotten from Amidala. That had been unexpected. Perhaps her masters were going to start giving her some different assignments, not just following and watching people. Amidala _had_ used the word "agent".

Leia's excitement faded when she thought of the fact that Vader had killed her and Luke's parents. Luke would hate her if he knew that she was so loyal to Vader and Amidala, and she wasn't even sure what had made her feel loyal to them.

She sighed and called Mara Jade on her comlink, to see if she wanted to go somewhere later.

* * *

Soon after Leia left, Amidala realized something. She had put on her make-up and blue eye contacts, but she had forgotten to darken her eyebrows with black eyeliner. It wouldn't be unlikely for Leia to notice a small detail like someone's eyebrows being dark brown instead of black, but maybe she hadn't been close enough to tell.

Amidala and Vader were inside one of their chambers, in one of the smaller adjoining rooms, when Luke arrived. He sensed that his mother was a little worried.

"What is wrong?" he asked.

She told him, and removed the black cloth from the lower half of her face for a moment.

"I don't think that she noticed," Luke said. "She was probably too nervous about talking to you."

"Maybe," Amidala replied. "Are you coming to Yavin Three with us?"

"Yes."

* * *

Leia went over to Mara's apartment. They were going to go see a holomovie, but it didn't start for almost two hours, so they were eating fruit salads that they had gotten from a restaurant across the street. They hadn't eaten there because they didn't feel like talking in very low whispers whenever they mentioned their masters.

"Where you say that Luke was going?" Mara asked.

Leia smiled. "Did you want to see him?"

"No." Mara glanced at Star, who was sitting a few feet away from the table, licking one of her front paws.

"I think you do. Are you sure that you don't want me to talk to him for you?"

"Don't."

Leia smiled again, as if she were going to talk to Luke anyway. "I used to wonder if my masters really loved each other, or if they were just got married so that they would seem more powerful together. But I think that they love each other."

"They do," Mara replied. "I am sure you've heard officers complaining about how defensive Lord Vader is. Sometimes he even dares to be a little rude to my master, if he says something mean to Lady Amidala."

Leia didn't think it was daring for her master to be rude for the Emperor, since Vader had always seemed more scary to her. But she didn't say that out loud.

Mara was quiet for a second, too, then changed the subject. "You didn't say where Luke was."

"He said that he's spending the night with Jaina and Jacen - his friends that you met."

"You sound like you don't believe him."

Leia sighed. "I don't know. You would expect him to be more suspicious of me, since I go on all these 'errands' all the time, but sometimes I wonder if he hides anything from me."

Mara hesitated. She had an idea. She didn't like it, but it might help. If she talked to Luke alone and told him that Leia was suspicious of him, he might be more careful. She was not on his side, but if she helped him, he might be nicer to her.

_And I want him to be nice to me, because I know that what he said about the Emperor is true. If the Emperor has him, he won't have any use for me_.

_No.Luke wouldn't ever join my master. He idolizes Vader_.

"Mara?" Leia asked.

Mara looked at her. "That play that opens tomorrow - the one with the Twi'lek girl whose name I can't remember?"

"Yes?"

"Would you mind asking Luke if he would see it with me?"

* * *

There will be more Vader/Amidala in the next chapter, sorry that this one was kinda short. 


	9. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

Vader and Luke were standing outside on the house's back porch. Amidala was inside, drying her hair after taking a shower. The sun had set a little less than an hour ago, and there was a full moon. Once Amidala was ready, the three of them were going to ride to a pond that was about an hour away.

"Would you do anything for her?" Vader asked. He and Luke had been talking about Mara.

"I would not join the Emperor, if that is what you're suggesting," his son said. "What will I have to do to prove that I am loyal to you?"

"You have already."

"Thank you, Father." Luke was quiet for a moment. "Do you knowanything about Mara that I could use?"

"Ask Leia. She may know," said Vader.

Luke's comlink started beeping. He answered it as Amidala came onto the porch.

"Luke," Leia said. "Will you be back home tomorrow?"

"Yes," he answered, holding his comlink a few inches away, so that his parents could hear.

"There is a play opening tomorrow night, and Mara wants to know if you'll go with her."

Of course, that made Luke suspicious. "Tell her I will be back tomorrow afternoon."

"Alright. I love you. See you tomorrow," Leia replied. She turned her comlink off.

"That was interesting," Amidala said, buttoning her fake taun-taun fur coat. "I wonder why Mara wants to see you."

"So do I," said Luke.

The three of them went to the garage, just to the left of the house, where the speeders were. Luke's was black and had four seats. It had been a present from his parents a few weeks after he joined them.

As they rode to the pond, they discussed what they should reveal to Leia first - that Vader and Amidala were the twins' parents, that Jaina and Jaina were Vader and Amidala, or that Luke had joined them almost six months ago. Amidala did not want to give up her disguise as Jaina yet - she wanted to become closer friends with Leia.

* * *

Mara Jade had almost fallen asleep when her comlink, on the table beside her bed, beeped. It was most likely Luke. The Emperor was going to be at his property on Geonosis for a few days and probably wouldn't contact her until he returned to Imperial City. Leia was probably asleep. It was almost midnight.

"Hello?" Mara asked, sitting up in bed.

"What do you want?" Luke demanded.

She was quiet for a second. She had expected him to be very suspicious about her suddenly wanting to go on a date with him. But still, she had thought he would be a little pleased, even though he had probably guessed that it wasn't going to be a real date. It was an opportunity to be alone with her.

"I do _not_ like you," she said. "I just want to talk to you, about Leia."

"You can do that now."

"We're talking on our comlinks. You won't be able to sense that I'm not lying," Mara replied. "If you want to go, you can come to my apartment..."

"_You_ can come to ours," Luke interrupted. He turned off his comlink without waiting for her to reply.

* * *

The next afternoon, Amidala went into the bedroom between her and Vader's and Luke's. For now, the room only had an extra bed with no blankets and a dark purple armchair, but it was going to be Leia's once she was here. Amidala decided to start getting it ready in a few days.

She turned around as Vader came into the room.

"What did Luke say about Mara Jade?" she asked. She had still been asleep when her son left early that morning.

"She wants to talk with him about Leia," Vader answered.

Amidala hugged him and rested her head against his chest. She briefly thought of the night at the lake house on Naboo, when she was telling Anakin that they couldn't be together. She did not necessarily try to forget her memories of him, even though she wasn't Padmé Skywalker anymore, but she did not have any desire to bring him back. She was Darth Amidala now and would always be with Darth Vader.

_"It wouldn't have to be that way. We could keep it a secret."_

_"We'd be living a lie."_

Padmé had paused after saying that, trying to think of what else to add. Before she could speak again, though, Anakin left the room. She heard the door to his room slam, which made her tremble for a moment. The next morning, though, he was focused on going to rescue his mother, so he did not show any anger toward Padmé.

After Padmé became Darth Amidala, she and Vader burned all of the pictures they had of Anakin, Padmé, or the couple together, as well all the notes and letters that the Jedi and the senator had written to each other, and Padmé's wedding dress.

It had been painful for Amidala to destroy those things, but Vader understood. She felt much happier the next day, when the two of them went to the Lake Country on Naboo. They rented a lakehouse that was several miles away from the one that Anakin and Padmé stayed in, and lived there for a few months before buying their house on Yavin Three.

"I love you," Amidala said, looking up at Vader.

"I love you," he said, touching her cheek. "We should go."

They did not have to leave for Imperial City until tomorrow morning, but they - as "Jacen" and "Jaina" - wanted to see Leia.

As they left the room, Amidala said, "I can't believe that the Emperor doesn't care about the fact that Leia and Luke have the same last name."

"It is obvious that she is our daughter. She is as Force-strong as Luke," said Vader. He and Amidala paused in the hallway. "The Emperor has not directly said that he knows, but he does."

"Then why did he try to make me think that you and Leia are involved?"

"What exactly did he say to you?"

"He said that you and Leia seem to be close. That was all, really."

"Because you could interpret that in more than one way. He wanted you to think and come to a conclusion on your own," Vader said. "He cannot lie to you, or else you will sense that he is being dishonest."

Amidala nodded. "I cannot wait to find out why Mara wants to talk to Luke about Leia."


	10. Chapter Ten

**Author's note**: I updated Wherever You Go 2, but for some reason, isn't showing it. 

**Chapter Ten**

When Luke came home, Leia was sitting on the couch living room, talking to someone - it seemed to be Mara Jade - on her comlink.

Luke sat beside her, waiting to hear if Mara might have called to cancel their "date". He had been frustrated last night because he had guessed that Mara didn't really want to go on a date with him, so he wasn't surprised to learn that she just wanted a chance to talk to him alone. He had calmed down now, though. This would be a good opportunity for _him_ to talk to Mara a few things, too.

Leia smiled faintly at Luke and said into her comlink, "He's here now. Do you want to talk to him? Okay. I will see you later."

"What did she say?" Luke asked after his sister turned off her comlink.

"She is going to be here at six o' clock. The play starts at seven."

"Jacen and Jaina are coming over," said Luke. "Their ship is having problems, and I told them they could stay in my room tonight. I'm sorry for the short notice."

"It's alright," Leia replied. She was not really happy about it, but she was probably going to be lonely tonight, since Mara would be with at the play with Luke. Perhaps she would like Jacen and Jaina if she got to know them.

"Thank you. Jacen and I can repair their ship tomorrow."

Leia was quiet. For a second, she wondered if it was a good idea for her brother to be with Mara, the Emperor's Hand. Darth Vader and Darth Amidala could somehow find out about her date, and then learn about Leia having a brother.

"Are you alright?" Luke asked.

Leia was about to tell him, but then she realized that she couldn't. Even if he believed that Mara was the Emperor's Hand, he would want to know how his sister knew, and then she would have to reveal that she served Vader and Amidala.

"I'm fine," she muttered. "I think I'll go take a shower."

* * *

Mara came over first. She was wearing a long-sleeved black dress that stopped just above her knees, and had left her hair down. Around her neck was a thin silver necklace that had a single teardrop-shaped diamond.

When she buzzed the apartment door, Luke opened it. He hesitated before letting her come in.

"Pretend that you like me," he said softly, touching her arm, "so that Leia isn't disappointed."

She nodded. "I will _pretend_."

He ignored that and let her inside, then closed the door behind them. He seemed to be in a much better mood now than when he had called her last night.

Leia came out of the living room. She had changed into white pants and a long-sleeved, light blue shirt.

"Hello, Mara," she said. "I like your necklace."

"Thank you. It belonged to my mother," Mara replied. She looked at Luke. "Can we go by my apartment first? I think I forgot to feed my cat."

"Yes," he said, since she was being honest. He leaned down and kissed her cheek.

_Don't do that again_, she said mentally.

He kissed her cheek again and slid his arm inside hers.

Leia smiled at them. "Have fun."

* * *

Once they got inside his speeder, Luke asked, "How did your parents die?"

"My cousins said that my mom died while she was giving birth to me, and that my father died before I was born," Mara answered.

"My aunt and uncle told Leia and I that," Luke replied as he started the speeder.

"When I first met the Emperor, he told me that he had been good friends with my parents, and he said that they were killed by a Jedi."

"Did he say who?"

"No."

"Do you believe him?"

Mara hesitated, wondering why she was confiding in Luke. This was disloyal to her master. But she answered without really thinking about it.

"I am not sure," she said. "That was the first time I met him, so I had no training and couldn't sense dishonesty. I've wanted to ask him about my parents again, but I haven't. Can I turn on the heating?"

"Yes," Luke said.

Mara switched it on. "Have you ever thought of training Leia?"

"She has asked me to train her. I think my mother will work with her."

"Oh."

"Mara, be reasonable," Luke said. "There is your master against me and my parents..."

"Don't start," she interrupted. "I wanted to go out with you tonight so I could talk to you about Leia."

Luke was not distracted. "Consider joining us, Mara. It will be much better if you come to us on your own."

She pretended that she was ignoring that. "Leia and I were talking yesterday, and she said that she has noticed you aren't always suspicious of her going on 'errands' and such. I just wanted to let you know."

"Thank you," Luke said. "Is that all you have to tell me?"

"Yes," Mara answered honestly. She was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Do your parents approve of you...liking me?"

"Yes."

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter, the next one will be much longer. 


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Chapter Eleven**

A few minutes after Luke and Mara left, Leia went outside for a moment, thinking of going to the nearby store before Jacen and Jaina arrived. But she decided to stay, in case one of her masters happened to call her comlink or the holographic pad in her room.

Just as she was about to go back inside, the door to Han's apartment opened, and he came out. He was wearing dark brown pants and a sleeveless white shirt. Leia watched him for a moment. She had never paid much attention to him before - Luke had talked to him more than she had.

"Leia," he said, surprising her.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Luke said you were looking for me the other day."

That shocked Leia more - she couldn't believe that her brother was helping a man reach her.

"I wanted to ask you something about your speeder bike," she replied, "but never mind."

"I don't have a speeder bike."

_Damn it_, Leia thought. "Oh. Sorry. I don't know why I thought you did."

"I'm going to, though. I'm going to look at one right now," said Han. He paused. "Would you like to...go with me?"

For a moment, Leia completely forgot that she was spying on him for Darth Vader and Darth Amidala. She suddenly felt shy.

"I would," she said, realizing that she honestly would, "but my brother's friends are coming over. Their ship needs a repair, so they're staying with us tonight."

"Alright. See ya later," Han said.

Leia tried to think of something to say, or somewhere that she could invite him to go to tomorrow, but he was already going down the stairs before she could think of anything. She sighed, surprised at how disappointed she was, and went back inside.

* * *

"How do you feel about your master?" Luke asked Mara. She had been quiet for the past several minutes.

"I shouldn't be discussing that with you," she replied.

"I am not going to tell him."

"He will probably find out that we went on a date, and he might question me about it - you, too, maybe."

"Then you can explain that you only arranged this so that you could talk with me alone," Luke said. He sounded calm, but Mara sensed the anger rising in him.

She sighed. "Then he'll want to know what I wanted to talk to you about. Damn, this was a stupid idea. He's going to be angry with me."

"You could avoid that if you would join my parents," Luke replied. When he stopped the speeder for a moment at a traffic light, he reached over to touch Mara's hand, but she pulled it away.

"Anyway," she said, "What did you mean when you asked how I feel about my master?"

"Are you friends?"

"I guess not. Not really," Mara answered, wondering again why she was confiding so much. She decided to be quiet until they reached her apartment.

* * *

When they entered the apartment, Star ran up to them. Mara picked her up and scratched behind each of her ears, then set her down. Luke noticed that the cat was not wearing the diamond collar he had gotten.

"Would you like something to drink?" Mara asked as they walked into the kitchen area. She remembered that they had come over here to see if Star had food. She looked at the food dish in the corner of the kitchen and saw that it was almost half full.

"No," Luke answered.

"I already talked to you about Leia," Mara said, "so you could go home...just tell her that I wasn't feeling well or something."

"My parents will be with her. I do not have to leave."

"When are you going to tell her who Jacen and Jaina are - and that you're a Sith, and that Vader and Amidala are your parents?"

"Do not worry about that," Luke said. "For now, I am focused on turning you."

"Well, don't waste your time," Mara replied. She started to walk past him, but he slid one arm around her waist, stopping her. For some reason, she remained still instead of trying to pull away from him.

"I love you," he said.

She was quiet at first. She was not surprised to hear that aloud, since he had stopped concealing his feelings for her a few days ago. For a moment, she wondered what it would be like if she did join Vader and Amidala, but she quickly pushed the thought away. She was loyal to the Emperor. He had chosen her. He still had not actually called her a Sith apprentice, but certainly he would when he thought she was ready to be a real apprentice, not just his favorite agent. And she was not going to give all of that up.

"Luke, you barely know me," she said softly. "All you _do_ know is basic facts that you or a spy could get. We are not even friends. Do you honestly expect me to leave my master to be with you?"

He moved in front of her more and slid his other arm around her, pulling her closer to him.

"Consider it," he said. "Do you think that my parents haven't seen the potential you have?"

Without replying, Mara backed away, out of his arms. He let her.

"Are you meeting with the Emperor tomorrow?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "I forgot about my speeder. Can you take me back to your apartment, so that I can get it?"

"Yes."

* * *

On the way back, they were both quiet, but Luke was in a calm mood, not angry at all. A couple of times, Mara almost said something about the speeder, just to get rid of the silence, but she did not want Luke to think that she was trying to be friendly.

When they reached the apartment, Leia, Vader, and Amidala were standing outside in the hall. It looked as if Vader and Amidala had just arrived.

"What happened?" Leia asked.

"I don't feel well," Mara said. "I'm just going to go home. I'm sorry, Luke."

"I hope you feel better," Amidala told her. She smiled. "Are you well enough to get home?"

"That's a great idea, Jaina," Leia said. "Mara, why don't you spend the night here?"

_Thanks a lot_, Mara thought to Amidala.

_Say yes_, she replied.

_You don't tell me what to do_.

"Mara?" Leia asked.

"Alright," she said.


	12. Chapter Twelve

Sorry for not updating sooner. The log-in page on wasn't showing up. 

**Chapter Twelve**

Leia was not oblivious to everything. She had noticed that Jaina's voice sounded exactly the same as Darth Amidala's. But she did not suspect that they were the same person. If Amidala was Jaina, that would mean she was having an affair with Jacen. Leia knew that even if she did not really like being married to Vader, she would not be foolish enough to try cheating on him. Not only that, but Leia did believe that her master and his wife loved each other.

Plus, Jaina's eyes were chocolate brown. Amidala had blue eyes, darker eyebrows, and slightly more tan skin - and there was that small cut that had been near the Sith Lady's eye the last time Leia talked to her. Jaina did not have one. Leia's suspicion faded.

She, Amidala, and Mara sat down at the table in the kitchen while Vader and Luke were talking in Luke's room.

"How did you and Jacen meet each other?" Leia asked Amidala.

"At a store on Tattooine," she answered.

"I thought I heard you tell Luke a minute ago that you met at a podracer show," Mara lied.

_Shut up_, Amidala told her mentally. Aloud, she said, "We did...we first met in the store, then we ran into each other at the show the next day."

Leia nodded as Luke and Vader entered the kitchen area.

"Luke," she said, "do you mind staying in the living room tonight, so Jacen and Jaina can stay in your room?"

"No," he answered, standing behind Mara. He twirled a few strands of her hair around his finger, then let them go. "Unless you want me to stay with you and Mara."

Leia smiled. "Does anyone want to go to the café? I want a vanilla coffee."

"I don't really feel like going out. I'll stay here," Mara said quietly.

"Jaina and I will go with you," Vader told Leia.

"Alright," she said. "Luke, will you stay with Mara, so she won't be alone?"

"Of course," he replied.

Mara sighed. Amidala smiled at her and thought, _You would be much happier if you joined us_.

_Don't start_, she replied.

* * *

As soon as Leia, Vader, and Amidala were gone, Luke sat down beside Mara. She was staring down at the table and was stressed. He rested his hand on her leg. She stood up and moved to the chair on the other side of the table, across from him. 

"Part of the reason why I made a fake date with you was to make Leia happy, right?" she asked. "I didn't want her to think that she failed at putting us together."

"Why are you asking? It was your idea," Luke said.

Mara thought for a moment. "If the Emperor finds out and wants to talk to you, will you tell him that we didn't do or discuss anything that he should be concerned with?"

"Why should I help you?"

"Do you _want_ him to kill me? You said that you love me."

"I do," Luke replied, "but I am trying to make you leave your master."

"_Please_," Mara said. Her eyes were wet. She hated begging him, but he could get her out of trouble with the Emperor. "I will do whatever...well, then you'll just tell me to join you."

"Yes."

Mara stood up. "I'm leaving."

"The front door is locked. Do you know the security code?" Luke asked, not even bothering to get up and try to stop her.

"No," she muttered. She sighed. "I'm going to go to Leia's room until she and your parents get back."

She left the kitchen without waiting for him to say anything.

* * *

Leia, Vader, and Amidala had just left the apartment building when Amidala stopped and looked at her husband. 

"Jacen, why don't we go to that new place instead?" she asked him. "Do you want to, Leia? We can take our speeder."

"Okay," she said. "What new place?"

"I forgot what it's called," Amidala said as they walked into the garage next to the apartment building. Her and Vader's black speeder was just inside the first level.

For a second, Leia felt nervous. She didn't think she was sensing danger, because she hadn't been trained to use the Force at all, so there was no way she could. But she suddenly preferred to have Mara and Luke go with them, or at least Luke.

"Leia?" Amidala asked. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she said quietly.

She turned around as someone entered the garage behind them. It was Han Solo. She was suddenly very glad to see him.

"Hey, Leia," he said.

"Hi," she replied. "We're going to get coffee. Do you want to come with us?"

"I'm going to take my new speeder bike for a ride. Wanna come?" he asked. He glanced at Leia's friends. "Only two of us can fit on it, though."

Leia definately wanted to go with him, not just to get away from Jacen and Jaina, but also because she was suddenly thrilled that he had asked her to go somewhere with him again. He didn't seem to be asking her out as a date, but the chance to be alone with him was good enough.

She looked at Jaina and Jacen. "Would you mind if I went with him?"

"I don't want your brother to get mad at us," Jaina said. She looked a little hurt, although Leia somehow got the impression that she was pretending.

_What is she trying to do_? Leia wondered. She looked back at Han. "Could you and I go tomorrow?"

"Sure," he said. "Later."

Leia started to approach the speeder, but stopped when she noticed that Jaina was watching Han leave. He walked over to the stairs that went up to the garage's second floor.

After waiting a second for Han to get most of the way up the stairs, Amidala came closer to Leia and quietly asked, "Have you been watching him?"

"Watching him?"

"Have you been watching him, like I told you to?"

"What?" Leia asked, staring at her.

"Leia, I thought you would have figured this out already," Amidala whispered. "Haven't you recognized my voice, or noticed that Mara is uncomfortable around Jacen and I?"

"I suspected..." Leia paused. "Does Lord Vader know about you and Jacen?"

"If I am Amidala, who do you think Jacen is?" Amidala asked as Vader came up behind her. He slid his arms around her waist.

This must have been some kind of test. Leia was about to apologize for failing them, but then she remembered Luke.

"What are you going to do to my brother?" she asked. Then, to keep from sounding rude and making them mad, she added, "My Lady."

"Luke has been a Sith Lord for six months," Vader told her.

"Go and ask him, if you want," Amidala added.

Even though she did not completely believe them yet, Leia asked, "Heknows that I serve you? And he knows that Mara is the Emperor's Hand?"

"Yes," answered Vader. He and Amidala were not going to reveal that they were her parents. It was too much to tell her at once.

"No..." Leia started, but she didn't know what to say.

She started walking away, but instead of going through the garage's entrance, she went to the stairs, up to the garage's second level.

* * *

She quickly hurried up the stairs, and was surprised to see that Han was still here. He was crouched beside his speeder bike, looking at on the side of it. When Leia came closer, she saw that it was a small scratch. 

"Han!" she said. "Can I please go with you? Please?"

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Can we just leave now? I'll explain later," Leia replied.

"Alright. Let's go," Han said.

He got on the speeder bike. Leia sat behind him and slid her arms around him to hold on. That did not seem to bother him. Right now, though, she was too upset by what she had learned about Luke to get excited about Han possibly liking her.

"Where do you wanna go?" he asked.

"Anywhere," Leia said. "Somewhere that's a little far away, though."

"How about my friend's casino? It's not a bad place, I promise."

"Okay."


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

Leia almost had fun as she and Han rode to his friend's casino. She held onto him, occasionally resting her head against his back for a moment. Whenever they stopped in the sky traffic, she looked around for Vader and Amidala's speeder or Luke's, but she didn't see either one anywhere.

When they had been riding for at least half-an-hour, she leaned foward and asked, "How far away is it?"

"Not much further," Han replied. "How do you like the speeder bike?"

"I love it." Leia suddenly had a little courage, since she figured that Vader was going to kill her for running off, anyway, and Luke might not even care. She added, "We should do this again sometime."

"Yeah."

* * *

Mara Jade was sitting on Leia's bed, looking at her e-mail on Leia's laptop computer - her friend had let her use it before, so she was sure it was okay - when Luke came entered the room. She glanced at him, then looked at the screen again.

"Is Leia back?" she asked.

"No," Luke answered. "After my parents revealed who they were, she ran away with Han."

"What?" Mara asked. She closed the laptop and set it aside. "What did they tell her?"

"Who they are, and that I am a Sith. She does not know that they are her parents."

"So she knows that I knew everything. She's going to hate me. Are Vader and Amidala looking for her?"

"My father thinks it would be best if you and I go. They will stay here," answered Luke. "She may be more willing to talk to me, or you."

Mara stood up. "_I_ want to go by myself. I should have told her right away that you're a Sith, and that Jacen and Jaina were really..."

"I would have denied it," Luke interrupted, "and who do you think she would have believed? The Emperor's Hand or her brother?"

Mara had to admit that he was right. She was about to leave without saying anything else, but she knew that he would somehow keep her from leaving alone - maybe he had done something to her speeder. She wondered if he would let her leave tomorrow, when she had to meet with the Emperor.

_I'll get up very early and walk to my master's property if I have to_, she thought. Then she remembered Luke saying that she didn't know the front door's security code. She sighed.

"Let's go," she said quietly, looking at him. For a moment, she wondered what was going to happen to her after he and his parents took over the Empire. Maybe she would live in a prisoner cell until she agreed to marry Luke or something - or maybe he would make her marry him, whether she liked it or not.

_What is wrong with me_? she thought as she followed him out of the room. _That will only happen _if_ he and his parents can defeat my master, and I know that my master has some kind of plan_.

Still, when she imagined Luke giving up on her and finding someone else instead, she was actually jealous. She really would like to be with him, if only they had met some other way and she wasn't the Emperor's Hand. Of course, she wouldn't be serving the Emperor anymore if Luke, Vader, and Amidala killed him.

_Stop it. Don't think about that_, she scolded herself.

Before they went into the living room, Luke paused a few feet away from the end of the short hallway and looked at Mara, almost as if he knew what she was thinking about. He couldn't, of course - Force-users couldn't read actual thoughts - but he probably sensed her confusion.

"If the Emperor wants to question me, I will defend you," he said. He moved closer and slid his arms around her.

"Thank you," she replied. She hugged him and rested her head against his chest for a moment. She would not mind standing that way for hours. If her master asked her how she felt about Luke, she would have to be honest and tell him that she did like Skywalker a little. Then the Emperor would kill her, so she might as well go ahead and get into more trouble.

"We should leave before Han and Leia get any further away," Luke said, interrupting her thoughts.

She nodded, hoping that Leia was still going to be her friend.

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter! 


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Chapter Fourteen**

Han's friend did have a nice casino. Leia Skywalker was relieved when she saw how clean and almost expensive-looking it was. She had expected a dirty place with a bunch of creeps and bounty hunters hanging around.

She and Han went over to the dining area, and they sat down in a black booth in the corner. Leia studied Han for a moment, realizing that, so far, he had been much more kind to her than she probably would have expected before. But she still was not in the mood to think about going out on dates.

"So, what happened?" Han asked her.

She thought for a moment. "Jacen and Jaina were making me a little nervous, that's all."

"What did they do?"

"Nothing. I just didn't want to go somewhere alone with them."

"That's all?" Han replied. He did not believe her. In the hotel's garage, she had hurried over to him and told him to leave quickly. Something else had happened.

"Yes," she said.

"I can't believe your brother would let you go."

"They're his friends. I've only met them a couple of times, though," Leia explained. "I guess I was just in a weird mood."

A teenage Zabrak waitress came over to the booth.

"What can I get you?" she asked.

"A Diet Starmoon Cola," said Leia, looking at the girl's nametag. Her name happened to be Luka.

"Water for me," Han said. "Put it on my tab. Han Solo."

"Alright." Luka turned and headed to the kitchen door, on the opposite side of the large room.

Before Leia could try to start a new subject, Han asked, "Did you have a fight with Luke or something?"

"No, but I am mad at him about something," she answered. "Have you ever told him that your friend owns this place?"

"No."

_Good_, Leia thought. Her brother, Mara, or Vader and Amidala - whoever might be out looking for her right now - would not think of coming here. Then again, if Vader and Amidala really did want to watch Han for some reason, they could have another agent who might have seen him come here before, so they might have learned that he came here often.

She wondered if it was fair for her to be angry with Luke. She couldn't believe that he had become a Sith, knowing that Vader and Amidala had killed his parents - but then she remembered how jealous she always felt whenever she thought of her masters letting her go and replacing her with someone else. She was loyal to them now, even if she had not wanted to join them in the first place. She was not any better than Luke was.

_We are both horrible_, she thought.

Now she knew why Luke had suddenly stopped talking to Yoda and Obi-Wan, and why he had wanted to move to Imperial City. She was not mad about that, though. She was glad that the two Jedi Masters left her and her brother alone.

She looked up as Luka set the two drinks on the table.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"Can I get you anything else?" Luka asked.

"No, thank you." Leia took a sip of her soda, then looked at Han. "I've seen a Wookie with you sometimes."

"That's Chewbacca," he replied. "He's my best friend. I...helped him four years ago, so he owes me a life-debt."

"Oh." Leia paused. "Have you ever noticed me before, Han? We've hardly talked at all since Luke and I moved here."

"Yes," he answered, without saying anything else. That did not bother Leia. She had other things to be worried about right now.

"I should probably go home," she said. "Luke is already going to be angry at me. I don't want to be out very late."

"Alright," Han replied. "Let's go."

* * *

Luke and Mara had gone to the café, but after seeing that Leia and Han were not there, they returned to the apartment building. At the moment, though, they were still sitting inside Luke's speeder.

"I can't think of anywhere else to look," Mara said. "Do you think she asked Han to take her to my place?"

"No. She is most likely mad at you," Luke answered. He reached over and rested his hand on her knee.

"Probably," she replied sadly. "Would you mind if I went home now? Leia won't want to talk to me, anyway."

"Alright."

Mara raised Luke's hand to her mouth and kissed it, then got out of the speeder and went over to hers, which was two spaces away. Luke watched her leave, then got out of his speeder and went inside.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Author's note: Sorry, I've been thinking that Imperial City was the name for all of Courscant, not just one area there. I now know the whole planet is Imperial Center. Since I've put "Imperial City" in so many of my stories, I'm not going to go back and edit them all, but just know that I realize the mistake. 

**Chapter Fifteen**

When they neared the apartment building, Leia asked Han to stop the speeder bike in front of it. Once they stopped, she held out two credit cards, each worth one hundred credits.

"Don't go to your apartment," she said. "I don't want Luke to bother you. Find a hotel and stay there for a couple of nights."

He took the cards from her. Just so she wouldn't think that he was afraid, he said, "Alright. I've gotta meet Chewbacca somewhere later, anyway."

"Okay," she replied. She got off the speeder bike. For a second, she looked at Han, briefly thinking of kissing his cheek before she left. But she didn't have the courage to.

"Are you sure that everything's alright?" he asked, even though he knew that she was not going to tell him the truth.

"Yes. Luke will probably be mad that I went off with you, but I'll deal with him," she said. "Good night. Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said.

He watched her until she went inside the building, then left.

* * *

When Leia entered the apartment, she hoped to go right to her bedroom without running into anyone, but Luke was in the living room. At least Darth Vader and Darth Amidala had left. 

"Where did you go?" Luke asked calmly, wanting to see if she would talk to him.

"Somewhere," Leia answered. She started walking to the hallway that led to the bedrooms, then paused. "And don't think of going after Han. I told him to go stay in a hotel, and I don't know where he went."

"You cannot possibly be angry at me."

"I am."

"You are as loyal to them as I am," Luke said, "and you have been serving them for three years."

"I didn't tell you before because I was trying to protect you," Leia replied. "In case they learned that I had a brother, I wanted to honestly tell them that you didn't know anything. I thought they might leave you alone."

"It does not matter now."

"It does to me," Leia said. "Lord Vader killed our parents, and now we are loyal to him and Lady Amidala. We are both evil."

"Obi-Wan _said_that Lord Vaderkilled our parents," Luke pointed out. "Why should we believe him? Our father was a Jedi, but he and our mother most likely died some other way. We do not know that anything we have been told, even by our aunt and uncle, is true."

"I agree with that," Leia said quietly, feeling relieved. "I never trusted Obi-Wan and Yoda."

"I noticed." Luke came closer and hugged her. "Why did you ask me to train you? Before you knew that I was a Sith?"

"I thought it would be useful," she answered. She let go of him. "I have only been a spy so far, but I thought that Lord Vader or Lady Amidala might give me a more challenging assignment sometime."

"They want me to train you."

Leia nodded. "Where are they now? Did they leave?"

"Yes," said Luke. "So did Mara."

"Why don't we go somewhere and get something to eat?" his sister suggested, feeling much better. She still felt bad, knowing that her father had been a Jedi - someone against the Sith - and now she was loyally serving two Sith. But as Luke had pointed out, they did not know the truth. For a moment, Leia wondered if Owen Lars was even Anakin Skywalker's stepbrother.

"Alright," Luke said, sensing that she was in a happier mood now. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "I do wish that our parents were alive, but they would want us to take the opportunity to become powerful."

"Yes, they would," Leia replied.

* * *

The next afternoon, Mara Jade entered the throne room on the first floor of the Emperor's castle. There was another throne room on the second floor, but this was the one where he usually met with people. 

Mara was a few minutes late, but as she stepped inside room's the open archway, she saw that her master was speaking to two Falleen men. They were at the other end of the large room, standing near the throne, and speaking too quietly for her to make out most of their words. She stood where she was and waited, not feeling impatient at all, since she might be killed today. She wished that Luke were here.

_So that he could try to protect me from my master, who I am loyal to?_

The two Falleen men said something else to Emperor Palpatine, then left. As they passed by Mara, one of them glanced at her - probably at the V-cut front of her long-sleeved white shirt, actually - and said something to his friend in a different language, Mara thought it was Ubese. She narrowed her eyes at them, then walked over to the Emperor.

She knelt down in front of him without saying anything.

"Rise," her master said.

Mara stood.

"One of the Falleen men that just left," the Emperor began, "lives in your building. He saw you and Luke enter your apartment last night."

"Yes, Master," Mara said. "We were going there for a minute first."

"Before what?"

"We had a date - a fake date, actually. Leia thought we were going on a date, but I just wanted a chance to talk with Luke alone."

"Why?" the Emperor asked.

"Leia was telling me that she thinks Luke is hiding something from her, so I wanted to let him know that he should be more careful."

"You wanted to help him?"

"Yes. You and Lord Vader and Lady Amidala do not want Leia to know that he is a Sith, Master," said Mara.

"I believe there is something else here, Mara," her master replied. He paused. "I expected you to be...attracted to Luke."

"You did, Master?"

"Of course. Why would you not be? He is a Sith, and seems as if he would be perfect for you. Most other men will disappear after learning that you are my Hand."

Mara nodded.

"But I do not want you to trust him," the Emperor added. "It is obvious that he and his parents want to take over the Empire one day. You are just someone else that they would have to get out of the way. Do you think Luke would care about you once I was gone?"

Mara did not want to give a direct answer to that question, so she tried saying, "That is a good point, Master."

Fortunately, he did not notice the trick, or at least pretended not to. "You will only be betrayed by him. I am warning you."

"Yes, Master," said Mara, although she knew that Luke was not lying to her. He had told her that he loved her, and she had sensed that he was being honest. But she was not going to tell her master about that. It would just make him suspicious of her.

"Go now. Watch the man who lives in your building. Let me know if he moves."

"Yes, Master," Mara said again. She gave a small bow of her head, then left.

* * *

  
Author's note: Sorry, I've been thinking that Imperial City was the name for all of Courscant, not just one area there. I now know the whole planet is Imperial Center. Since I've put "Imperial City" in so many of my stories, I'm not going to go back and edit them all, but just know that I realize the mistake. 


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Chapter Sixteen**

Darth Amidala spent almost all of the next day finishing Leia's bedroom. She could have hired painters and an interior designer to do it, but she thought Leia might be touched when she learned that her mother had done everything herself.

She sat down on the white couch, looking at the dark purple walls. On the table beside the bed was a silver jewelry box that had belonged to Shmi Skywalker. Anakin had taken a few of his mother's things from the Lars' house - which was understandable - and Padmé had kept them in the apartment on Coruscant.

_Imperial Center_, Amidala corrected herself, looking up at as Darth Vader entered the room. She remembered the day when she called her mother and told her that she had decided to join Vader. Jobal just turned off her comlink without saying anything. When Amidala tried calling her father's comlink, four times that day, he never answered.

Her parents finally talked to her again after she sent them some pictures of the twins, which she almost always took when she and Vader spied on Beru and Owen.

When Vader sat beside her, she curled up beside him and rested her head in his lap.

"When are we going to tell Leia?" she asked quietly.

"I will tell her," he answered, stroking his wife's hair. He had been pleased, and proud, when she came to him on his own. He thought he would have to search every planet and moon that anyone could live on to find her, then hold her prisoner for a few months before her attitude finally changed. He would have done that if it had been necessary, no matter what his master thought about it.

But the Emperor had accepted Amidala instantly, probably because he knew that if he did not, Vader was never going to be loyal to him.

"What about Mara?" Amidala asked, breaking into her husband's thoughts.

"We do not need to try to persuade her," he said. "Once her master is dead, she will have no reason to refuse Luke."

"That is true. Has she ever learned what really happened to her parents?"

"I do not think so."

* * *

Luke and Leia Skywalker were in Luke's room, discussing moving, when Luke's holograph pad began to beep. He quickly pressed the button to accept the signal, and they both stood on the pad together, knowing that it was either Vader or Amidala. 

Vader's image formed in front of them. He was not wearing his armor. Leia guessed that he was at home. She wondered where he and Amidala lived.

"Luke and Leia," he said.

"Yes, Master?" Leia asked.

"Take Mara Jade to any of the Yavin planets before noon tomorrow."

"We will take her to Yavin Three, Master," Luke replied.

"Stay with her. Do not allow her to leave the planet until I tell you," Vader added.

* * *

  
Author's note: I have a new Luke/Mara story called My Star. 


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Chapter Seventeen**

"What are we going to tell Mara?" Leia asked as she started her speeder.

"The truth," Luke said. "If you lie to her, she will sense it."

"She'll refuse to come with us."

"That is why I brought this," Luke replied. He was holding a small blaster, a kind that only stunned; it didn't have a KILL setting. "But perhaps she will want to come with us."

His sister glanced at him. She still was not used to him being a Sith, and the dark, cold feeling that she sometimes had when she looked at him now. She wondered if he would have any problem killing her if she refused to become a Sith apprentice.

_He would kill me, or Lord Vader or Lady Amidala would_, she thought, _and then they would find someone else to be their favorite spy_.

Jealousy rose up inside her. She didn't know why. Now she knew that they were not going to harm Luke, since he was a Sith, but she was still mysteriously attached to them, despite how afraid she was of them.

The speeder left the apartment building's garage and joined a line of sky traffic.

"Luke," Leia asked, "why did you tell our master that we would go to Yavin Three?"

He was quiet for a second, then answered, "No reason. I just said it."

"Oh. Okay," Leia replied. She did not believe him.

She was mostly quiet for the rest of the ride to Mara's apartment building.

* * *

When Mara answered the door, she thought of the Falleen man who lived in her building, and wondered if he was watching from somewhere. Briefly, Mara wondered if the Emperor really cared about her watching the man or not - perhaps he had just wanted to warn her that he had someone watching _her_.

Star came up and rubbed her head against Leia's leg. Leia picked her up and scratched behind each of her ears, then set her down again.

"Why are you here?" Mara asked, noticing the blaster that Luke was holding.

She didn't try to move away when he slid his arms around her. He leaned down and kissed her cheek.

"We are going to Yavin Three," he said, "and we want you to come with us."

"Right now?"

"Tomorrow morning," Leia answered. "Early."

Mara hesitated, then said, "Alright, but I'll have to leave if my master needs me. Luke, why do you have a blaster?"

"In case you said no," he told her.

She looked at him for a moment, annoyed. "Oh, I just remembered - could you help me move the desk in my room?"

"Yes," he said.

"Thanks," Mara replied. "Leia, will you stay here and hold Star, so that she doesn't run in there and get in the way?"

"Sure," Leia muttered. She could not sense dishonesty, since she had no training yet, but she knew something was going on. She glared at them for a second, just so they would know that she wasn't stupid, then picked up Star again and took her into the living room.

* * *

Mara's bedroom had a normal door - not one that slid closed - and when she and Luke went inside, she didn't notice that she didn't close the door all the way. Very quietly, Leia walked down the short hallway, pausing a few inches away from the door. She continued holding Star, not wanting the cat to jump down and push the door open.

She heard Mara ask, "Why are you and Leia going to Yavin Three?"

"Lord Vader wants you to be there," Luke answered.

"He wants to see me?"

"Perhaps. He did not say."

Mara was quiet for a second, then softly replied, "When will Lord Vader let you tell Leia what really happened to your parents?"

"When he decides to," Luke answered.

Leia did not care to listen anymore. She set Star down, then went to the front door and left.

Luke and Mara heard a speeder leaving, but they didn't realize that it was Leia's until they left the room and saw that she was nowhere in the apartment. Luke went back to Mara's room and looked through her bedroom window, seeing that Leia's speeder was gone.

* * *

At first, Leia angrily went nowhere in particular. She finally decided to go to Han's friend's casino. If Han wasn't there, perhaps his friend would know where he was.

She spent almost an hour trying to find the place. She didn't remember the whole way there. She stopped at two other casinos to quickly ask if they knew where it was, and got an idea of how to get there.

As she headed there, she decided who to ask about her parents - Vader and Amidala. She would be very nervous, but she doubted that they would lie to her. At least, she would trust them more than she would Luke and Mara.

First, though, she wanted to see Han.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Chapter Eighteen**

There were a lot of people at the casino, but Leia Skywalker spotted Han Solo instantly, over at one of the two bars. He was talking to a human man with curly dark brown hair - Wesley, his friend who owned the place. Seeing him made her feel better already. She barely knew him, yet she was certain that she would be safe if she stayed with him. It was hard to explain, but she did not care.

As she made her way over there, she analyzed what Mara asked Luke - when would Lord Vader let him tell Leia what had really happened to their parents?

_Let him?_ Leia thought. Maybe she had overreacted. It sounded as if her brother possibly wanted to tell her, but their master did not want him to.

But she still had the feeling that something else was going on - the same way she was sure that she could trust Han - and she wanted to get away, at least for now. She had thought of a plan on the way over here, but it would only work if Han was willing to help her.

"Leia. Hey," Han said when he noticed her approaching. Wesley was talking to a Zabrak girl now.

"Hello," Leia replied. The seat beside his was empty, but she didn't sit down.

"Is something wrong?"

"Well, there's a pod race on Tattooine that I want to go to - tomorrow - and I thought you'd want to go. But we have to leave right now."

"Fine with me," Han said. "Chewbacca's at the landing lot with the Falcon. It's just a block away. We can take my speeder bike."

"What about my speeder?"

"Wesley will let you leave it here, in the garage in the back. It'll be okay."

"Alright," Leia said. "Let's hurry."

Han looked at her for a second, realizing that she was scared about something. He knew that she did not really want to go to a pod race, but he said nothing.

* * *

"Why?" Amidala asked, worried. She and Vader were standing on the holographic pad in their bedroom, looking at the image of their son and Mara Jade in front of them. 

"I don't know," Mara answered. "She just left."

"What could have made her upset?"

"I don't know," Mara repeated. "We've called her comlink five times, and she won't answer."

Even though Vader could not sense if she was being honest, since they were not talking in person, he believed her. If he tried to contact Leia, she would most likely answer. She probably thought that he was already be angry at her for disappearing, and she would not want to make him more mad by ignoring his calls.

"Luke, bring Mara to Yavin Three," he said. "Once you are here, I will deal with Leia myself."

"Yes, Father," he replied.

He disconnected, and his and Mara's image faded away.

Amidala looked at her husband. "You want to go to Leia alone?"

"Yes," he answered. "You and Luke will stay here with Mara. The two of you may be able to convince her to join us."

"What if we cannot?"

"Then you will kill her."

Amidala sighed, knowing that Luke would not like that, and neither would she. She would hate to get rid of someone who had so much potential. But if Mara absolutely would not join them, she could be a threat - there were things she might reveal to the Emperor, such as the location of the twins' apartment and what planets they were thinking of moving to. Luke would understand that letting her go free was too risky.

* * *

Leia had seen Chewbacca before, but had not actually met him. She got the impression that he would be nice to her, since she was someone that Han liked. Inside the _Millenium Falcon_'s cockpit, she sat down in the third seat, behind his and Han's. 

She was quiet as the ship took off. She wondered what the secret about her parents was - something about how they had died? Maybe Vader really had killed them. Maybe Luke was not really Leia's brother. Leia suddenly realized that she had no way of knowing if anyone had told her the truth about anything.

Chewbacca said something. Leia didn't realize he was talking to her until Han translated, "He wants to know why you're upset."

"I don't want to talk about it," she told them.

"You don't really want to go to a podrace, do you?" Han asked.

"No," Leia said, "but if you could take me to Mos Eisley, I would be very grateful. You don't have to stay there with me."

"Why Mos Eisley?"

"Luke probably won't expect me to go there."

"Are you hiding from him?"

"Yes, for now," Leia answered. She had not decided if she was going to go see Owen and Beru or not.

Chewbacca said something. Han was about to translate, but then Leia's comlink beeped. She took it out of the small black handbag she had with her. Looking at the number on the screen, she saw that it was Vader. She froze, remembering that she and Luke were supposed to be taking Mara Jade to Yavin Three.

"I'll be right back," she said.

She stood up and went to the refresher in the back of the ship. Once she was inside and had locked the door behind her, she turned her comlink on.

"My master," she said quietly. She was trembling.

"Where are you?" he asked, in his normal voice. He wasn't wearing his mask.

"I apologize for..."

"Answer me."

"Tattooine," Leia said. "Well, I am on my way there."

"You know that I cannot sense honesty over a comlink, Leia," Vader told her. "If you are lying to me now, you will regret it."

"I am not, Master. I am going to Mos Eisley."

"Why?"

"Because I...something happened, and I want to get away from Luke," Leia said, hoping that Vader would not want her to tell him about it.

"Stay in Mos Eisley until I tell you to come to Yavin Three," he said. "If you go anywhere else, I will kill you the next time I see you."

"Yes, Master," Leia replied. "Please don't be angry at Luke. It's not his fault that I ran off."

Vader turned his comlink off without saying anything. Leia turned hers off, then started to cry. She wiped her face, realizing that Han and Chewbacca were going to wonder what was going on. After fixing her make-up, she went back to the front of the ship.

* * *

"Who was that?" Han asked. 

"Mara," Leia lied, sitting down in the seat behind him and Chewbacca again. "I didn't tell her where we're going."

"If you want us to stay there with you, we will," Han offered, wondering why he was being so caring and polite. He barely knew Leia.

Chewbacca looked at him and laughed.

"Shut up," he said. "Leia, do you want us to stay?"

"No," she answered. "Don't."

"Alright."

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter again, the next one _is_ going to be long. I wanted to go ahead and post this. 


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Tymaporer**: Thanks!

**Emerald Tiara**: Thanks for your reviews! Luke can take Mara to Yavin Three by himself, like you said, but Leia is worried because Vader told her and Luke to _both_ be on Yavin Three with Mara (for whatever reason why he wants both of the twins there). So her running off is disobedient, whether Luke needs her help or not.

**Chapter Nineteen**

Once they landed just outside of Mos Eisley, Han looked over at Leia before opening the ship's ramp.

"Are you sure that you don't want us to stay with you?" he asked. This time, Chewbacca did not laugh at him.

"Don't," Leia insisted. "I will watch and make sure that you leave as soon as I'm off the ship."

Chewbacca asked her what was going on. Han translated for her.

"Thank you for bringing me here," she said, ignoring the question.

Before Han could demand that she tell them, she stood up and went over to his chair, then kissed the top of his head. He looked into her eyes for a second. If Chewbacca weren't here, he would have tried to kiss her mouth.

She looked at the Wookie. "Can I give you a hug?"

He stood and wrapped his furry arms around her. She smiled. Han went over to a panel of buttons on the wall and pressed one that set the boarding ramp down.

"Thank you," Leia told them again.

She went outside and walked over to a large open area between two buildings. She stood and waited until the _Millenium Falcon_ had taken off and disappeared, then turned and went into the city.

She and Luke had come here a few times a year since they left Tattooine four years ago, so she still knew her way around very well. She considered getting a room at a hotel, since she could not leave until Darth Vader contacted her.

* * *

Luke and Mara arrived at the house in two hours. As soon as they were there, Vader left Yavin Three and headed for Tattooine. He was sure that Leia really was there - she would not dare lie to him, even if he could not sense dishonesty when they were talking on comlinks. 

He was not really bothered by having to go to Mos Eisley, since he was focused on looking for his daughter. He wondered if she would go see Owen and Beru, but doubted it. The twins had talked to their aunt and uncle occasionally, but had not visited them since they left Tattooine. Still, Vader would go to the Lars homestead if he could not find Leia anywhere else.

He had no idea what had upset her enough to make her flee - she had panicked when she learned that "Jaina" and "Jacen" were really Vader and Amidala, but she had returned home after less than two hours. And she would never run away when she had orders to go somewhere.

When Vader called her earlier, she had said that she wanted to get away from Luke, but Luke did not know what he had done. Mara could not think of anything, either.

* * *

"I love it here," Mara said. She and Luke were in his bedroom, sitting on the couch, which faced the single large window. The curtains were open, so she could see the beautiful view of the forest and the mountains in the distance. 

"So do I," Luke replied. He rested his hand on her leg. "You should consider moving here."

She knew that he was hinting at her joining him and his parents. She changed the subject. "Why would Leia go to Mos Eisley? Do you think she wants to see your aunt and uncle?"

"No. We do not talk to them often. She probably thought that I would not think of her going there."

"Oh."

Luke touched Mara's chin and made her look up at him, then kissed her mouth. He knew that his father wanted her to be killed if she had not agreed to join them by the end of the day. But he was not upset at all, because he knew that he would be able to convince her.

Once she pulled away from him, he said, "I love you."

She hesitated. "Thank you."

"Why do you refuse to join us? We will not let the Emperor harm you."

"I am _loyal_ to my master, Luke," Mara insisted.

He kissed her cheek. "Only because you think that you have no other choice."

She looked at him, annoyed - probably because he might be right. She was not sure what she really liked about serving her master. She was hoping that he would make her his apprentice, a real Sith apprentice, but he had said nothing to indicate that he was planning to train her. Luke's parents, however, were already trying to make her become an apprentice.

There was a buzz from the door. Luke looked and mentally pressed the button on the panel to open it. Amidala came inside.

"I was thinking that we could go to the pond," she told them. She smiled. "Unless the two of you want to be alone."

"I would love to go," Mara said, standing up.

* * *

Leia had spent three hours going to a restaurant, then a movie theater. Before the theater room darkened, she spotted two Zabrak girls, sitting three rows in front of her, whom she had kind of known before she and Luke moved. She did not go sit with them, though. She was not in a fun mood, since she kept worrying about what Vader and Amidala were going to do to her. 

After leaving the theater, she had rented a hotel room. She did not realize she was tired until she lay down on the couch to rest for a few minutes. When she opened her eyes, she looked at the chrono on the wall and saw that she had been asleep for a little over an hour. She did not think that Luke or anyone else had called her comlink during then. She had set it on the table beside the couch, so the beeping would have woken her up.

She felt a little bored. Since she did not know when her master was going to tell her to come to the Yavin system, she might as well do something besides hide in restaurants or the movie theater. If she saw Owen and Beru somewhere, she would get back to the hotel as quickly as she could.

The first place where Vader had looked for Leia was a pet store - he knew that his daughter loved animals. She was not there, but as he was leaving the place, he spotted her across the street, coming out of the hotel. She was wearing a long white skirt and a sleeveless white shirt.

Suddenly, she turned and went back inside the hotel, although she had not even looked in Vader's direction. He concealed his presence and went over there.

* * *

Leia took the stairs up to the hotel's second floor, since she did not want to wait for the elevator. She was very sure that she had seen Beru's cousin, Tereesa, approaching the café next to the hotel. Actually, the woman had not been close enough for Leia to clearly tell if it was Tereesa, but she did not want to take the chance. 

She went over to the couch and turned on the viewing screen. She flipped through a few channels before finding a documentary on dewbacks. Once, when she and Luke were thirteen, she found a male baby dewback not far from their house. She begged Owen and Beru to let her keep him, but they made her take him to the pet store.

There was a buzz from the door. She froze.

_It has to be a maid_, she thought. _The receptionist can't tell Tereesa what room I'm in_.

She relaxed and turned the viewing screen off, then went to the door. She was scared again when she saw who was really there.

"Master," she said quietly. She stepped aside so that he could come in. "I am extremely sorry for..."

"Why are you hiding from Luke?" he interrupted.

Leia pressed the button beside the door to to close it. When it was completely shut, she answered, "I was angry at him. I apologize for running off. I was not thinking."

"Tell me what happened."

As they walked over to the living room area, Leia told him about eavesdropping on Mara and Luke's conversation, and Mara wanting to know when Luke could tell his sister what had really happened to their parents. She did not leave anything out.

Her master was quiet at first. She sat down on the couch, wondering what he was going to do.

"Mara made it sound more serious than it is," he said calmly, not sounding angry at all. He looked at the glass doors that opened to the balcony. "Your mother used to be my girlfriend. Did you know that?"

"No," Leia said, surprised. "I didn't."

"Luke never told you?"

"No, Master."

"Good. I ordered him not to tell you. I thought you would be bothered by it."

"I understand," Leia replied. She hesitated. "I do not mean to be rude, but why did you and my mother break up?"

"You do not need to know," he answered.

"Forgive me, Master."

"Padmé married your father soon after I met Amidala," Vader added. "I heard that she died while giving birth, and your father was killed in a battle shortly before then. That is all I know."

"Yes, Master. I believe you, but Obi-wan and Yoda told me and Luke that _you_ killed our parents."

"Because they wanted to make you hate Amidala and I, so that you would kill us. They are too cowardly to face us themselves."

"I agree," said Leia.

Vader was pleased to hear that. "We will go back to Yavin Three.Your brother and Mara are there now."

"Yes, Master."


	20. Chapter Twenty

**Chapter Twenty**

Leia was quiet as they walked to the landing lot where Vader had left his ship, which was only a few minutes away. She wanted to ask him a few questions - how he and her mother met, if they were serious and in love - but she did not want to annoy him. It was not really her business, anyway, even though she wanted to hear more about Padmé.

She thought of one thing she should know, though. "Master, how did Luke find out about you and my mother?"

"I do not know. He already knew when I met him," he lied.

"Oh," Leia said softly, wondering why Luke had not told her before he met Vader. Perhaps he did not want to scare her, or maybe he thought that she wouldn't even believe him. She could understand both of those reasons.

Her master's ship was very nice - she glimpsed a nice kitchen area and two table booths. Beyond them was a door that led to the rest of the ship. As she sat down in one of the black leather seats in the cockpit, she looked at the wall, where there were a few pictures of Amidala. There were some over on the other wall, too.

As the ship took off, Leia could not believe that her master was not angry about her running off. Perhaps he was just planning to deal with it later. Her brother was going to be mad at her as well. She pictured Luke burning her with a lightsaber or maybe cutting off one of her fingers to teach her lesson - and maybe he would kill Han and Chewbacca. None of that seemed unrealistic. She sighed.

"Luke is going to train you," Vader said, interrupting her thoughts.

"He told me," she replied, realizing that she was probably not going to see Han much anymore.

"I sense that you are not completely resistant."

Leia hesitated, then said, "Actually, Master, I have been kind of wishing that you and Lady Amidala would let me do something else, other than spying. I do not mean to be disrespectful at all, I just..."

Vader looked at her. "You know that you are greater."

"Maybe. I don't know."

"Your assignments have been simple because Amidala and I did not want anything to happen to you, and we did not want the Emperor to suspect that we were already training you."

"But didn't he let you train my brother, Master?" asked Leia.

"Yes," Vader answered. "He suspects that Amidala and I want to take over the Empire, so he has tried to convince Luke to join him, so that he will have a new apprentice. He will try to persuade you next."

"But he has Mara already. Why would he want me _or_ Luke?"

"He knows that she and your brother are interested in each other, so he may use her."

Leia was quiet for a second, then said, "I am only loyal to you and Lady Amidala, Master."

"Good. Then we will not have to destroy you," Vader replied, although he was not even considering killing her.

She felt scared, and said nothing for a while. For a moment, she wished her parents were still alive, so that her father - a great Jedi Knight - could save her from all of this and turn Luke back to good. Of course, that meant wishing that her father could kill Vader and Amidala, which was disloyal.

Finally, she asked, "Where on Yavin Three are we going, Master?"

"My house," he answered.

Leia was a little surprised. He and Lady Amidala obviously trusted her and Luke a lot, if they were going to let the twins see where their house was. But Mara was the Emperor's Hand...

"Is Mara there, too, Master?"

"Yes."

"Forgive me, but she could tell her master..."

"I know," Vader interrupted, not sounding annoyed. "That is why we are going to kill her tonight, if she does not agree to serve me."

Leia tried not to cry.

* * *

When they went to the garage, Darth Amidala got into the driver's seat of her and Darth Vader's speeder. Mara quickly took the opportunity to sit beside her, so that Luke had to go to the back seat. That did not help much. He sat behind her and rested his hands on her shoulders. 

Amidala smiled at them. "I think we should have your wedding by the lake."

"_Wedding_? I'm not marrying him!" Mara exclaimed.

She was surprised when Luke said nothing. He seemed to be thinking about something.

Amidala looked at her son, guessing that he was wondering if he would have to kill Mara tonight, if she would not join them. Vader would probably give Leia a chance to persuade her. If Luke and Amidala could not convince her, Leia probably could.

Mara felt the awkward silence, so she changed the subject. "I thought you said we were going to a pond."

"Both. The pond is right beside the lake," Amidala replied as she started the speeder.

Luke leaned foward and kissed Mara's cheek. "Does the Emperor know that my parents live here?"

"Not that I know of," she answered honestly.

Luke kissed her cheek again, and she did not pretend that he was bothering her. But her master came to her mind, which ruined her good mood. She was afraid of him, but she was also afraid of Luke, Vader, Amidala, and Leia, and she did not want to make the four of them angry. She was not counting on the Emperor to protect her from them.

"I will join you," she said quietly.

Amidala looked at her. "Good. See, Luke? This did not have to be unpleasant."

"Of course not," he replied. He had started massaging Mara's shoulders with his fingers.

Amidala slowed the speeder and turned it around. "We should go to the town instead. You need a new comlink, so that the Emperor cannot contact you."

"Alright," Mara said.


	21. Chapter TwentyOne

**Chapter Twenty-One**

Darth Amidala, Luke, and Mara returned home before Darth Vader and Leia arrived. Leia had been quiet on the rest of the way to Yavin Three, except for answering her master when he asked her about a couple of people that she had spied on recently.

The ship rested in a landing area near the house, where there was one other ship - Luke's. As Vader and Leia began walking to the house, Leia wondered how long she would be here. She thought of calling Han later, whenever she was alone, but then she realized that she didn't know his comlink number. She decided to go see him as soon as she returned to Imperial Center.

She felt more nervous as she and her master went inside the house. Amidala came to the entrance room, followed by Luke and Mara. Leia was scared for a moment, wondering if they were all going to kill her right now. She did not think that her brother would care.

"Hello, Leia," Amidala said, not sounding angry.

"My Lady," Leia replied, bowing her head.

"You must be wondering why we wanted all of you to come to our home. We want to discuss a few matters here, where there is more privacy."

"Yes, My Lady."

"Luke, will you show her where the other guest room is?" Amidala asked. Of course, that was really Leia's new bedroom.

"Yes, My Lady," he said.

Leia followed him and Mara to the staircase at the opposite end of the room. Before starting to go up the stairs, she paused for a moment and looked behind, seeing that Vader was now holding Amidala tightly. She rested her head against his chest. He said something, but Leia was too far away to hear what it was. She was almost touched at the sight, before remembering that Vader might have harmed her mother - maybe both of her parents. He had not told her why he and her mother had broken up.

She turned and quickly went up the stairs.

* * *

She liked the guest room, but now that she, Mara, and Luke were alone, she wanted to talk to them. 

"Why are you here, Mara?" she asked. "Why would they want you here if we're going to be discussing..."

"She has agreed to join us," Luke interrupted.

"Oh," Leia said. She was glad to hear that, but she did not calm down. "Luke, why didn't you tell me that Lord Vader used to date our mother? He said that you already knew when he found you."

"He told me not to tell you."

"But why didn't you tell me _before_ he found you?"

"I did not want to scare you," Luke answered, standing behind Mara. He slid his arms around her and said, "Let's go."

"Where are you going?" Leia asked.

"To Imperial Center," said Mara. "I left something at my apartment."

She and Luke were going to get her cat, but she did not want to say that. Leia did not know that the three of them were actually moving in here. She might think it was strange that Mara was going to get Star if they were only going to be staying here for a couple of days.

"You're going to leave me here?" Leia asked. "Can't I go with you?"

"No. Lord Vader and Lady Amidala want you to stay here," Luke said. "We will be back tomorrow morning."

"Alright," his sister muttered. She was scared, but she was not going to argue with their masters' orders.

Mara came over to her and hugged her, then opened the door and went to the hallway.

"Wait," Leia whispered to Luke. "Leave Han alone. Please?"

He left without saying anything.

Leia closed the door, with tears already coming from her eyes. She wiped her face, then went over to the white couch and curled up on one end of it. A few minutes later, she was asleep.


	22. Chapter TwentyTwo

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

When Leia opened her eyes, she quickly got up and went across the room. Looking at the small clock on the table beside the bed, she saw that she had been asleep for a little more than an hour. She sighed, hoping that neither of her masters had come in here during then. Beside the clock was the silver jewelry box that had belonged to Shmi Skywalker. Leia opened it - it probably wouldn't be in here if there were anything secret inside.

There was just one gold necklace, which had also belonged to Shmi. Leia started to touch it, but then felt rude. She closed the box's lid.

She went back to the couch, which faced a large viewing screen on the wall. Sitting on the small table was a black remote control. She picked it up and turned the screen on, then flipped through a couple of channels until she found a show about taun-tauns.

Hopefully, Luke and Mara would be back from Imperial Center tomorrow morning, as Luke had said they would be. Even though her trust and close bond with her brother was gone now, Leia did not want to be alone with their masters. She could not believe that Luke had left her here with them. He had to obey their orders, of course, but he had not even seemed worried.

Her eyes became wet. She looked at the screen and tried to pay attention to the show, so that she wouldn't start crying. It didn't help when a wampa was shown catching an injured baby taun-taun that had trouble running.

The bedroom door started to open. Leia turned the screen off and stood up. Darth Amidala came inside.

"Do you like your room?" she asked, closing the door behind her.

"Yes, My Lady," Leia answered. She hesitated. "My room?"

"The guest room, I mean."

"It's nice."

"I know this must be awkward for you," Amidala said, "but since Mara Jade has just agreed to join us, we would rather talk with her here than on the Executor - even if our chambers there are private. And I thought she would be more comfortable with you here."

"I understand, My Lady," Leia replied.

"Luke will be training both of you for now."

"I thought that Mara was already trained."

"She only knows a few techniques that the Emperor taught her. He has not officially made her his apprentice."

"Oh," Leia said quietly. She wished that Amidala would leave, so that she could go back to sleep and not wake up until Luke and Mara returned tomorrow.

"Are you hiding anything from me?"

"No, My Lady," Leia answered, surprised by the question. She tried to think of what the reason for that question might be. "Lord Vader told me that my mother used to be his girlfriend."

"I know about that," said Amidala. She was quiet for a second. "We have a reservation at a restaurant. Someone that you may spy on will be there, and we want you to see them. Change clothes if you wish."

_This should be fun_, Leia thought sarcastically. "I don't have anything to wear, My Lady."

"Look in the closet."

"Thank you, My Lady."

"Meet us downstairs," Amidala added. She left the room.

* * *

Leia was not sure if they were going anywhere after the restaurant, but in case they were, she looked for something that she could move easily in. She found a long-sleeved black dress that stopped right above her knees, and black boots. 

When she approached the bedroom door, she opened it a little, but stopped when she heard another door opening, too - the one that was most likely Vader and Amidala's room.

"Leia should go to the party," Amidala was saying as she entered the hallway. "His son will be there, and I want her to meet him."

"No," Vader replied.

"Wouldn't you rather her be with an admiral's son, instead of Han?"

_Why does she care?_ Leia thought.

She did not want to hear anymore, so she opened the door all the way and went into the hall.

"Are you ready?" Amidala asked. She was also wearing something comfortable, black pants and a long-sleeved red shirt. Maybe they _were_ going somewhere after the restaurant.

"Yes, My Lady," answered Leia.

* * *

She was quiet as they walked down the stairs and outside. She was worried about Han, and hoped that he had not gone back to Imperial Center after taking her to Tattooine. As soon as she saw him again, she was going to try to convince him to move. Of course, it would be hard to do that if she didn't explain the Sith, that she was Vader and Amidala's spy, and everything else. She would have to make something up. 

Amidala sat in the backseat of the speeder with Leia.

"The person that we are watching at the restaurant," she said, "is the son of the Executor's admiral."

_Probably the same son of an admiral that I heard them talking about_, Leia thought.


	23. Chapter TwentyThree

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

Once Vader parked the speeder in front of the expensive restaurant, he and Amidala looked at the entrance for a moment.

"There he is, Leia," Vader said.

Leia looked up and leaned foward a little. A group of four people around her age, a Falleen couple and a human couple, were approaching the entrance. Leia had seen the _Executor_'s admiral - Admiral Piett - before, of course, so she knew that the human boy was his son. The human girl, who had long blonde hair and was wearing an orange dress, had her arm inside his.

"The girl is his sister," Amidala added.

"What are their names?" asked Leia.

"Tanya and Fredrick," Vader answered.

"When we are inside, remember to call us Jacen and Jaina," said Amidala.

"Yes, My Lady," Leia replied.

* * *

They went to a private room, where there were only five tables. Theirs was in the back corner. Leia sat across from Vader and Amidala and, again, wished that Luke and Mara were here. She didn't believe that they had gone to Imperial Center just to pick up something that Mara had left at her apartment. 

Leia looked over at the table in the other back corner, seeing that Tanya, Fredrick, and their two friends were sitting there. Fredrick's short hair was brown, like his father's. He was handsome, but Leia was too interested in Han to really care.

When a waiter came to their table, she didn't order anything to eat, just water. Vader and Amidala did the same.

"Why did Luke and Mara go to Imperial Center?" Leia asked them, to see if they would tell her anything.

"To get Mara's cat," Vader said.

"Why? Are we going to be here for a while?"

"Maybe Mara did not want to leave her alone," Amidala replied.

Leia was suspicious, but that faded as she watched Vader drape his arm around his wife's shoulders. For a moment, she wondered if she should confess that she had overheard their conversation in the hall earlier, about setting her up with Fredrick, but she changed her mind. They would probably be angry at her. She was a little annoyed with herself. She had no business eavesdropping, even if they had been talking about her.

There was one thing she was curious about, though...

"I was wondering something," she said.

"What is it?" Vader asked.

"Nevermind."

"Tell us."

Leia hesitated, then whispered,"Why did you want me to watch Han?"

"We..." Amidala started, then she looked at Vader.

"That is our concern," he said.

"I'm sorry," Leia replied. She would have added "my Master" if they were not in a restaurant.

"What happened on the way to Tattooine?" asked Amidala.

"Between Han and I?"

"_Yes_, Leia. You know what I mean."

"Nothing, My...Jaina," she answered, scared. "He and Chewbacca just took me there. I don't know where they went after they left me."

"Alright," Amidala said. She did not sound angry, but that did not necessarily mean that she and Vader weren't going to hurt Han.

Leia was sad for a moment, but she suddenly realized something. They were probably going to tell her to watch Fredrick, and back at the house, when she was listening to their conversation, Amidala had mentioned a party that Fredrick was going to be at. It wasn't unlikely that the party would be on Imperial Center.

Whether it was or not, Fredrick probably went to the planet often, being an admiral's son. While Leia was spying on him, she would have a chance to go to Han's apartment, or his friend's casino, and talk to him. She still did not know how she could convince him to move without telling him everything, but at least she would get to see him.

A few minutes later, she, Vader, and Amidala left the restaurant. They did not go anywhere else, as she had guessed earlier. She was glad. She wanted to get back to the house's guest room, so that she could be alone.

* * *

Once she was in the room, she turned on the viewing screen and watched a few shows. She was not very tired, after the two naps she had taken today. She thought of calling Mara's comlink, but Mara would probably tell Luke that she was calling, and she did not want to talk to him. 

A little after ten o' clock, there was a soft knock on the door. Leia guessed that it was Amidala. She turned off the viewing screen and went to answer it. When she opened it, she saw that she was right.

"I came to see if you need anything," Amidala said.

"No, My Lady. Thank you."

"Also, Admiral Piett's wife is having a birthday party next week, on Imperial Center. Vader and I want you to go and watch Tanya and Fredrick."

"Yes, My Lady," Leia replied. She remembered something else that was strange. Earlier, when Amidala had suggested to Vader that their spy go to the party, he had said no. But maybe there was no big secret behind that, or else he wouldn't have changed his mind.

"Luke and Mara will go with you," Amidala said.

_Damn_, Leia thought. She would have to find a way to get away from them for an hour or two, so that she could go see Han.

"Do you still want me to watch Han?" she asked, just to make sure that the two Sith were not still thinking about him.

"No," Amidala answered. She paused. "I know what you are probably thinking, Leia."

"What do you mean?"

"I know that Han is attractive to you, because he seems like a bad, dangerous scoundrel type..."

_And do you think that your husband _isn't_ dangerous?_ Leia thought.

"...but it's just a phase that you're going through," Amidala said. "You don't want to get involved with someone who is just going to be a low-life criminal and smuggler until he finally gets caught or killed."

"Yes, My Lady," Leia said, so that she would leave.

Amidala knew that her daughter did not agree with her, but she said nothing about it.

"Good night, Leia."

"Good night, My Lady."


	24. Chapter TwentyFour

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

Leia Skywalker lay awake for over an hour, mostly trying to think of how she could sneak off and go see Han when she, her brother, and Mara Jade went to Admiral Piett's wife's party. At first, she felt as if she were being disloyal, but then she decided that Darth Amidala had said she did not have to _spy on_ Han anymore. That was not the same thing as telling her to stay away from him.

There was still the problem of how she was going to get away before, during, or after the party, since Luke and Mara would probably stay with her every minute. But she fell asleep without having any ideas.

The next morning, someone softly said "Leia" a couple of times, and gently touched her shoulder.

She opened her eyes and saw Mara sitting beside her, on the edge of the bed. Then she felt something moving around near the left end of the bed. She looked and saw that it was Star.

"Good morning," Mara said.

"Where is Luke?"

"Downstairs."

Leia sat up. "Why did you have to go get Star?"

"I didn't want to leave her by herself," Mara answered. She reached over and scratched the top of her cat's head. "And I wanted to get a few clothes."

"Oh," Leia said. "Lady Amidala put some clothes in my closet. I wonder why she didn't do that in the other guest room."

Her friend shrugged. "I don't mind."

The bedroom door opened. Luke came inside, wearing a sleeveless white shirt - one of the shirts that his sister had gotten him for their birthday - and dark brown pants. Star hopped down from the bed and went over to him.

"Did you see Han?" Leia asked.

"No," he said.

"You're probably lying. I can't wait until I learn to sense dishonesty."

Mara looked at her boyfriend for a moment, then at Leia. "He moved. When we went stopped at you and Luke's apartment, there was a Twi'lek family moving into his place."

"I don't believe you."

"When we go to Mrs. Piett's party, we will show you," Luke said.

Leia was quiet for a second, knowing that he would not have said that if he were lying. She watched as Star rubbed against his leg, then went over to the couch in front of the viewing screen.

"You probably forced him to move," she said bitterly, "or maybe you killed him and Chewbacca."

"Perhaps we did."

"Luke!" Mara said. "Leia, we didn't kill them."

"Will you two leave so that I can take a shower?" she asked.

"Okay." Mara went to the couch and picked up Star. "Lady Amidala wants to have breakfast with you and I, in one hour."

"Where is Lord Vader?"

"I am going somewhere with him," Luke answered.

Once he and Mara left the room, Leia got out of bed and went into the refresher.

* * *

She chose a long-sleeved white shirt and black pants. While flipping through channels yesterday, she paused on a quick weather report that said it was going to be cool for the rest of the week. It was autumn here. 

Before leaving the room, she glanced at the jewelry box on the table beside the bed, and thought of the the gold necklace inside. It would look pretty with the gold eyeshadow she had put on, but she definately was not going to take it. She would try to find one like it the next time she went shopping, though.

When she left the room, she saw Vader and Luke standing outside of Luke's door. She tried to go over to the stairs before one of them could stop her.

"Come here, Leia," her master said.

She went over to him. Luke left them and went downstairs.

"What is wrong with you?" Vader asked.

Leia had no idea what to say. There were four or five things bothering her, and she did not know which one he was suspecting.

"What do you mean, Master?"

"Anything," he answered.

His daughter thought for a moment, and suddenly became more nervous.

"I heard what you and Lady Amidala said last night," she told him.

"What do you mean?"

"Before we left for the restaurant," Leia said, "I was about to come out of my bedroom, and I heard My Lady talking about the party, and asking you if you would rather me be with an admiral's son than Han. I'm very sorry, Master. I know that I shouldn't have stopped and listened."

"I do not care," he replied. "I expected you to figure it out soon. You would have thought it was strange that we wanted you to spy on an admiral's son."

"Oh." Leia was relieved that he was not mad. "I should go, Master. Lady Amidala wants to see me."

"I am taking you somewhere tonight," he said.

"Just me, Master?"

"Yes. Go now."

Leia gave him a small bow of her head, then went downstairs.


	25. Chapter TwentyFive

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

Leia felt impatient as she entered the dining room downstairs. She could not wait to go home. She doubted that she, Luke, and Mara Jade would be here for more than a week. It could not take that long to go over whatever matters Vader and Amidala wanted to discuss.

"Good morning, Leia," Amidala said.

She was sitting at the end of the table, and Mara was on her left, so Leia took the other seat on her right.

"Good morning, My Lady," she said. She studied the plate of eggs, fruit, and sausage in front of her. It looked safe.

Mara looked at Amidala. "Did you tell her, My Lady?"

"No."

Leia looked at them. "What is it?"

"Luke and I are getting married," Mara answered.

"Congratulations."

"I was just telling Mara," Amidala said, "that Luke will be training the two of you."

"Yes, My Lady," Leia replied, realizing that she was probably not going to have a lot of time alone. Getting a chance to call Han on her comlink or see him would be difficult. Still, she had to at least convince him to move away from Imperial Center.

* * *

After breakfast, Leia went back to her guest room and tried on both of the bikinis in her closet, to make sure that they fit. She was wearing the dark green one when there was a knock on the door. She sighed and went to answer it. 

Amidala was there.

"I want to talk to you," she said. "Does that bathing suit fit?"

"Yes, My Lady," Leia answered, letting her inside.

"Good." She looked over in the direction of the bed - maybe at the table beside it, which reminded Leia of something.

"I looked in that jewelry box - I was just curious, sorry - and there's a necklace in it."

"That is for you."

"Oh. Thank you," Leia said.

Amidala looked at her. "Did Vader tell you that you are going somewhere with him tonight?"

"Yes, ma'am. Do you know where?"

"The lake."

"May I ask why?"

"To talk to you," Amidala answered.

Leia was not going to ask what Vader wanted to talk to her about. It was unlikely that she would get an answer. She almost asked how long she, Mara, and Luke, would be here, but she did not want to seem rude.

"What did you want to talk to me about, My Lady?"

"What I said last night, about Han. I know that must have made you angry. I just said it because I am concerned."

_Yeah, right_, Leia thought. "Yes, ma'am."

Amidala knew that she was still a little upset, but she decided to leave her alone.

"I will be in my room if you or Mara need anything," she said.

"Thank you, My Lady."

* * *

Leia changed back into her clothes. Now that she knew the gold necklace was hers, she put it on. 

She slowly opened her door and looked, making sure that Amidala was not in the hallway or coming up the stairs - she did not want to talk to her - then went to the other guest room.

Mara let her inside.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"No," Leia said, "but I doubt that you will tell me anything if I ask you any questions, so don't worry about it."

"I serve Vader and Amidala now. I will do what they tell me," Mara replied.

"I understand that."

"Has the Emperor called you?" Leia asked, following Mara over to the couch in front of the window. Star was curled up in the middle.

"Maybe. Lady Amidala bought me a new comlink, so he can't reach me."

"Why did you finally decided to join us?"

"I love Luke," Mara said, sitting down beside Star. "And I want to be a Sith, but my master - I mean, the Emperor - never officially made me his apprentice. I doubt that he was going to."

"Lucky you. Lord Vader and Lady Amidala approve of the person you like. They want to set me up with Fredrick Piett."

Mara stroked her cat's head. "Leia, I know that this will make you angry, but they are probably right. Han has helped you out a couple of times, but you barely know him."

"He lived in the apartment next to me and Luke's. I've never even _met_ Fredrick," her friend replied.

"No, but think about it. An admiral's son would probably be better for you. He is in the Imperial scene and would understand your life more."

"Even if Fredrick was an admiral himself, I wouldn't care if I didn't like him as a person."

"That makes sense," Mara agreed, "but I think you should at least give him a chance. I doubt that Lord Vader and Lady Amidala would do this if they did not think he would be good for you."

Leia looked at her. "That's another thing! Why do they care about my dating life? Mara, don't you and Luke think that any of this is strange?"

"I'm sure that they have a good reason for it," she said.

Leia sighed. Without saying anything else, she left and went back to her room.

* * *

She didn't come out until that evening, when her brother and Vader returned.While she was watching a movie, someone knocked on her door. As much as she wanted to ignore it, she knew that being babyish was only going to make this harder. 

She turned the screen off and went into the refresher to quickly brush her hair. When she came out, Amidala was standing inthe room.

"Vader is waiting for you downstairs," she said. She noticed that Leia was wearing Shmi's necklace now, and added, "You look beautiful."

Her daughter seemed a little surprised by the compliment. "Thank you, My Lady."

* * *

Luke and Mara were out in the hallway. Leia just glanced at them and went to the stairs. She did want to speak with them before she left, but not with Amidala there. 

Vader was at the foot of the stairs. Leia's eyes became wet, but she blinked a few times and managed to stop any tears from coming out. She wondered if her master just wanted to talk to her about Fredrick, but she didn't know why he would he want to take her out to the lake and be alone with her just to discuss an assignment.

She was quiet as she followed him to his speeder, which he had left in front of the house. Once they got inside, she tried to think of something to say.

"Lady Amidala told me that we are going to the lake."

"We are," her master confirmed.

She hesitated. "Did you...and my mother ever go there?"

"Yes."

Since he had given her an answer, Leia was eager to ask a few more questions, but she did not want to annoy him. She was quiet during the ride.


	26. Chapter TwentySix

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

Vader parked the speeder a few feet away from the edge of the large pond. In the distance was the lake. Looking at both, Leia thought that her master and her mother might have sat here together like this, maybe even in this exact speeder. Then she remembered that this model was just released last year.

"Are we allowed to be here, Master?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered. "Come on."

Leia shivered as she got out of the speeder, wishing she had brought a coat with her. It was cooler now, and her long-sleeved white shirt was not very warm.

Vader walked closer to the water. Leia stayed beside the speeder for now. She probably should have brought her comlink, just to be safe. Then she realized that if she got scared and ran off, she wouldn't have anyone to call for help, anyway, since her brother and Mara were both loyal to Vader.

Han would probably help her, but she did not know his comlink number. She wondered if it was evening on whatever planet or moon he was on.

Suddenly, she remembered that her speeder was still at his friend's casino on Imperial Center. Perhaps Luke and Mara would let her get it when they went to Mrs. Piett's party next week. She might see Han there. If she didn't, she could at least ask his friend, Wesley, if he knew where Han was now.

Of course, there was still the problem of getting her brother to let her go by herself, or let her go at all. She did not want to sneak away again. If she kept doing that, Vader and Amidala might not want her to work for them anymore.

"Come here, Leia," Vader said, looking at her.

She walked over to him, but left a little space between them.

"I never brought your mother here," he told her.

She looked at him. "You didn't, Master?"

He hesitated, then said, "I was only testing you. I wanted to see if you have begun to sense dishonesty on your own."

"So you did come here with her?"

"Yes, but not when she was my girlfriend," Vader answered. That was true - Amidala was his wife when they first visited this place.

"Oh," Leia said, feeling a little discouraged that she had not detected the lie. She hoped that he was not disappointed. Shivering, she crossed her arms over her chest. As soon as they returned to the house, she was going to take a warm bath.

"What time is it?" her master asked.

She looked at the black chronowatch on her wrist. "Seven-forty."

"We will go now."

She wondered why he had brought her here just to test whether she could sense a dishonest statement, but she did not ask.

-----

They went back into the same woods, which had a few connected, wide paths for speeders. It did not take Leia long to notice that they were going somewhere else, or at least, they seemed to be. She was sure that the side path that Vader turned onto was not the one that led back to the house.

When they came out of the woods, into a large field, she saw that the path continued to a city in the distance. She did not ask where they were going.

Her master parked the speeder outside of a fancy-looking restaurant. Leia wished that Darth Amidala had mentioned it, so that she could have put on a dress. But her white shirt and black pants looked nice enough. She wondered why they were here.

"Remember to call me Jacen," Vader reminded her.

"Yes, Master," she said.

-----

Just inside the entrance was the hostess, a Zabrak girl around Leia's age. Vader gave her a fake name. She looked in the reservation book she was holding, then led them down the hall to a small dining room on the left.

There were only four tables in the room. Theirs was in the back corner. All of the others were occupied, but they had enough space between them that Leia could not overhear anyone else's conversation. She was hungry, but decided to just order something to drink, so that she and her master could leave sooner.

"Are we going anywhere after this?" she asked politely.

"No," Vader answered.

Leia wondered if he was being honest, or if he was lying to test her again. She sighed.

A minute later, their waiter, a human man, came to their table with two menus.

"What would you and your wife like to drink, sir?" he asked Vader.

Vader looked at Leia. "She is my daughter."

She stared back at him for a second, seeming a little startled, as if she had realized that he was not just saying that for their disguise.

"Oh. Pardon me," the waiter said. "I hope I'll be in as great shape as you when my son is older."

Vader ignored him and asked Leia, "What do you want?"

"Water," she said.

"And what for you, sir?" the waiter asked.

"Water," Vader answered.

"Alright."

Vader watched until the waiter had left the room, then asked, "Did you sense that I was not lying?"

"About what?" Leia replied, even though she surely knew what he was referring to.

"You are my daughter."

"That can't be true."

"You know that it is."

He was right. Leia sighed. "But you told me that my mother was your girlfriend."

"My wife _was_ my girlfriend once," said Vader.

Leia did not say anything at first. The waiter returned with their water. When he asked if they wanted to hear what the specials were, Leia said no. She ordered a salad, even though she was not planning to eat it. Vader did not order anything.

After the waiter left again, Leia's eyes became wet. She blinked, trying to keep tears from coming out.

"I'm going to the refresher," she said. "I really am. I'll be right back."

Vader sensed that she was being honest, so he let her go. When she came back, she asked him if they could leave. He hid his presence and slid his arm inside hers, so that he could also hide her.

On the way home, she was quiet again. She did not cry, although she did not feel any better. But she did believe her master. Now she understood why he and Luke seemed to be friends, and why he and Amidala trusted the twins enough to let them stay in their house. She had a few questions, but did not feel like talking.

-----

When they entered the house, Amidala and Mara were standing inside the living room. Leia headed for the stairs. Vader did not stop her.

"Does she know?" Mara asked softly, walking into the hallway.

"Yes," Vader answered as Amidala came to his side. He slid his arm around her.

"The Emperor tried to mentally connect with me while you were gone," Mara said. "Three times."

"Did you ignore it?"

"Yes. He must be angry."

"You do not need to be concerned about him," said Amidala. "You serve us now. Ignore him if he tries again."

"Yes, My Lady."

-----

Leia took off the gold necklace and put it back in the jewelry box on the table beside the bed. She was about to go into her refresher and take a bath, but there was a knock on the door. She had expected that. She sighed and went to open it.

"Are you alright?" Luke asked.

"Why do you care?"

"You have no reason to be angry with me. Our father did not want you to know yet, and they told me not to tell you. I was obeying their orders. You would do the same."

"I know," Leia replied in a softer tone. "Come in."

Once she closed the door behind him, Luke asked, "Did he tell you why we are here?"

"No. Will _you_ tell me?"

"He and Mother did want more privacy to talk to Mara," Luke answered, "but you are moving in here."

"Just me?"

"They bought the house on the right, in the distance, for Mara and I."

Leia was glad to hear that. "So, we really aren't related to the Lars or the Skywalkers?"

Luke hesitated. He was not sure if their parents wanted her to hear that story yet, but she deserved a straight answer.

"Father used to be a Jedi named Anakin Skywalker," he said, "and Mother was senator named Padmé. Anakin became Darth Vader while Padmé was pregnant with us. But that was their old life."

"Why didn't they raise us?"

"They wanted to hide us from the Emperor, Obi-wan, and Yoda," Luke answered. "They watched us often."

Leia nodded. She was quiet for a second, then said, "I'm starving. Could you ask if we could go somewhere? Just you and Mara and I?"

"Yes."


	27. Chapter TwentySeven

Emerald Tiara: Mara knew since the beginning of the story that Vader and Amidala were the twins' parents. Near the end of the first chapter, Luke threatens to kill her (not really meaning it, though) if she reveals that Vader and Amidala are Leia's parents. Thanks for your review! 

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

"Does the Emperor know?" Leia asked.

She was sitting in the backseat of the speeder, behind Luke. They were riding back to the house now, and she was a little nervous. She did not feel like talking to her parents. Hopefully she could go to her room and quickly get in bed.

"Yes," Mara answered. "He knows about Luke. He never actually admitted that he knows about you, but it's obvious that he does."

"How?"

"Your sensitivity to the Force," Luke said, "and the way our father favors you over his other spies."

"He and Lady Amidala have four other trusted spies," Leia replied. "I've watched one before."

"No. They made that up."

"Why?"

"To make you want to compete," said Mara.

"Oh," Leia said softly. She always felt a little competitive, since she wanted to do the best work for Darth Vader and Darth Amidala. Not just because she thought they might kill her if she failed at something, but because of her strange attachment to them.

Thinking about that made her realize something - perhaps they had only let her spy, and didn't give her any big assignments, because they wanted to protect her.

-----

When they reached the house, Vader and Amidala were nowhere downstairs. Leia quickly headed upstairs. She still wanted to take a warm bath, then go to bed and think some more about how she could go see Han when she, Luke, and Mara went to Imperial Center.

Amidala was waiting for her, sitting on the couch in front of the viewing screen.

"My Lady," Leia said.

"Do you like your bedroom?" she asked. "I did it myself."

"Yes, My Lady. Thank you."

"Good." Amidala stood up, and now her daughter saw that she was holding a small, grey kitten. She set it down on the floor. "He is yours."

"Thank you," Leia said again, looking at him.

"I will talk to you tomorrow. You must be tired."

"A little."

"Good night."

Leia hesitated, then asked, "Are you going to make me marry Fredrick Piett?"

"I don't know," Amidala answered. She came closer and kissed her daughter's forehead. "Other officers' sons - and men from good families - will be at the party. If you meet someone else that you like, tell me."

"Yes, My Lady," Leia said. That did not make her feel better. Han was not the type of man that they would want her to marry.

"Good night."

"Good night, My Lady."

-----

Mara was lying on the bed, watching a weather forecast on the viewing screen, when she felt the Emperor trying to mentally connect with her. He had tried earlier while she, Leia, and Luke were at the restaurant. She ignored him and looked at the door as her fiancée came inside.

"Are you alright?" Luke asked.

"The Emperor tried to talk to me again."

"Did you respond?"

"Of course not," Mara answered, sitting up.

"My parents and I are going to see him tomorrow," Luke said as he opened the closet. He took his shirt off and tossed it inside.

"Leia and I aren't going?"

"No. You have not been completely trained yet, and Leia does not have any training. My father does not want either of you to be harmed."

"Alright," Mara replied. "Maybe I can talk to her about Fredrick."

-----------------------

Sorry for the short chapter, the next one will be longer.


	28. Chapter TwentyEight

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

"I wish you would let me go," Mara Jade said. She was still lying in bed, snuggled under the covers.

"I told you, you only have some training," Luke replied, putting one of his black cloaks on. "My father and I do not want you to be hurt."

Mara knew that he was right. Even though she had been serving her master for four years, and he had joined his parents six months ago, he had really been Darth Vader's apprentice. The Emperor had only taught Mara a few techniques and never officially made her his apprentice.

"Are you worried that the Emperor will influence me and convince me to go back to him?" she asked.

"No," Luke answered. "Even if he did, it would not help. My father and I would still defeat him."

"I know. I love you."

"I love you, too." Luke looked at her. "Do not respond to the Emperor if he tries to connect with you while we are gone."

"I won't. He hasn't tried again since last night."

"Do you think he will give up?"

"Probably not," Mara answered, sitting up. She shivered and held the covers up to her shoulders. "I was his favorite spy - I think - and he hasn't sensed that I'm dead, so he'll want to know what's going on. And I know so many of his secrets, like the hidden entrances to his castle that I told you about."

Luke came over to the bed and sat down beside her for a moment, so that he could kiss her. She hugged him.

"My father and I will be back tonight," he said. "See if you can talk to Leia."

"I will."

-----

Leia was awake, sitting on her couch. A weather report on the viewing screen had said that it was going to be cooler today than yesterday, so she was wearing black pants and a long-sleeved red shirt. In her lap was the grey kitten that Darth Amidala had given her. She had not thought of a name for him yet.

There was a knock on the door. She set the kitten down on the floor and went to answer.

Amidala was there, still wearing a thin black robe over her white nightgown.

"Good morning, Leia," she said.

"Good morning."

"I am not feeling well, so I am not going with Luke and your father. I will be in my room if you and Mara need anything."

"Yes, My Lady," said Leia. She wondered if Amidala really was sick, or just wanted to keep an eye on her.

After her mother left, she picked up the kitten again and returned to the couch.

Just as she sat down, her comlink beeped. She set the kitten down again and went over to the table beside her bed. Amidala and Mara were here, and Vader and Luke hadn't left yet, so who would be calling her? Perhaps the Emperor had gotten her number somehow.

She picked up the comlink and turned it on. "Hello?"

"Leia? Is that you?" Han Solo asked.

"Han!" she said. She looked at the bedroom door to make sure it was closed all the way, then lowered her voice. "How did you get my comlink number?"

"Chewbacca got it from your comlink," he answered. "Remember, while we were on our way to Tattooine, I was showing you the rest of the ship, and you left your purse on your chair in the cockpit?"

"Oh."

"Sorry. I didn't know he did that until just now."

"It's fine," Leia said. She wasn't mad. "Luke and Mara told me that you moved."

"I did. I'm on Naboo now, in Theed," Han replied.

Leia wondered how he could afford a place in Theed. Even small apartments in the city were probably a little too expensive. But that was a rude thing to think.

"I am glad that you called me," she said. "Have Luke and Mara talked to you?"

"No. Are you still mad at them?"

"No." Leia wanted to tell him that she liked him, but she was not sure if that was a good idea. If he liked her, too, he might try to find her, and then Vader or Luke would kill him. And she definately was not going to tell him who her parents were.

"Are you still on Tattooine?"

"No," Leia answered, without saying where she was. "I should go. We're going to eat breakfast soon."

"Alright," Han replied. He turned his comlink off.

------

Amidala was sitting on her and Vader's bed, brushing her hair, when someone knocked on the door. She went and opened it. It was Mara.

"My Lady," she whispered, "Han is coming to Mrs. Piett's party."

After letting her inside and shutting the door, Amidala asked, "How do you know?"

"I was just talking to Tanya Piett on my comlink. She told me that Fredrick's friend, Han, repaired a scratch on the speeder that their mother is getting for her birthday."

"Did she say that his last name is Solo?"

"Yes," Mara answered. "I asked her. I said that my friend knows a Han Solo."

Amidala sighed. "Do not tell Leia. I will talk to Vader when he and Luke come home."

"Yes, My Lady."


	29. Chapter TwentyNine

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

Luke and Darth Vader were leaving Imperial Center now, on their way to the _Executor_.

"When we arrive," Vader said, "you will tell the officers that I now rule the Empire, and that you and Leia Skywalker are second-in-command. Tell them to inform the other Star Destroyers and bases."

"Yes, Father," Luke replied. Vader was going to stay on the ship, since he had not brought his armor.

"If they do not believe you, tell them that they can ask me personally when I am there tomorrow."

"I will."

Vader turned his comlink on and called Amidala to let her know that everything had gone well.

-----

Leia was looking at the dresses in her closet, trying to pick one to wear to the party, when her mother came into her room. Amidala was carrying the grey kitten, who had crept through the slightly open door and wandered into the hallway.

"I'm sorry, My Lady," Leia said. "I didn't notice that he got out."

"Have you named him yet?" Amidala asked, looking at the dress that her daughter was holding up. It was royal blue, with two thin straps on each shoulder.

"Yes, ma'am. Prince."

"I just talked to your father. Everything is fine. You and your brother are second-in-command of the Empire now."

"Were either of them injured?"

"No." Amidala set Prince down on the floor. "Also, I talked with him about Mrs. Piett's party. We decided not to make you go."

"Oh," Leia said, sounding disappointed. "Yes, My Lady."

"Did you want to go?"

"A little."

Amidala felt bad for a moment, wanting to tell Leia that she could go, so that she could meet Fredrick Piett, and other officers' sons. But she would see Han there, and then she wouldn't be interested in anyone else. Maybe she would even try to run off with him again. Amidala doubted it, but she still did not want to take that risk.

"Your father and I want some time alone with you," she said.

"Yes, My Lady," Leia replied, feeling a little nervous. She put the dress back in the closet, then picked up Prince and scratched behind each of his ears.

"You may call me 'Mother'," Amidala told her, "unless you are not comfortable enough yet."

"Yes, ma'am."

-----

Leia stayed in her room until lunch. She did not call Amidala "Mother" yet, but decided that she probably should, so that she wouldn't annoy her. Neither her mother nor Mara seemed to know that Han had called her.

Suddenly, though, Amidala asked, "Leia, where is Han from?"

"Corellia," her daughter answered, wondering if she was hinting that she did know about the call. Maybe there some kind of wire in Leia's room. But Vader and Amidala probably wouldn't do something like that if they wanted their daughter to like them.

"Oh," Amidala said. "Do you like the salad?"

"Yes, ma'am," Leia replied, glad that she had changed the subject.

"Yes," Mara seconded.

-------------------

Sorry for another short chapter. The next one will be long.


	30. Chapter Thirty

**Author's note**: Will someone please leave me a review, so I can see if it shows up? I'm having a few problems. I have new reviews on some stories that aren't showing up. I have a new story (Angel, second rewrite) that isn't showing up on my profile, and there's a "story not found" note whenever I go to its link. Also, updates on other stories aren't showing up on my profile. I've tried deleting the old cookies/files/history from my browser and my profile still isn't updated after I refresh the page. I've tried going to FAQ/Help, but after I log into the help section, I just get a blank page. 

**Chapter Thirty**

The next morning, before she and Luke left for Imperial Center, Mara Jade went to Leia's room.

"I wish you could go," she lied. Han was going to be there, and it was best that Leia stay away from him until she realized that he was not right for her.

"Me, too," her future sister-in-law said. "I'll be alone with..._them_ until you and Luke come home tomorrow."

"Leia, remember before you knew they were your parents, and you told me how you felt sort of attached them? And you said that you would be jealous if they ever let you go and replaced you with someone else?"

"Yes."

"Well," Mara said, "now you know that they are your parents, and how pleased they are with you. I'm surprised that you aren't happy."

Leia realized that she had made a good point.

A second later, Luke came in, since the door was open. Leia hugged him.

"Will you let me know if you see Han anywhere?" she asked. "Please?"

"No." He bent down a little to kiss the top of her head. "I am doing this for your own good."

Mara felt bad as she watched them. She almost wanted to say that Han was going to be at the party, but Amidala had told her not to, and Leia would just be upset.

"I understand," Leia said. She knew that her brother and Mara would sense that she didn't mean it, but she didn't care. "Have a good time."

-----

Leia soon felt a little bored. She turned on the viewing screen for a moment, but she was getting tired of hiding here in her room and watching movies and shows all day, so she turned it off. She went into Mara and Luke's room to see if Star had any food in her bowl. She did, so Leia re-filled her water dish and then went downstairs.

She froze when she heard faint lightsaber noises coming from somewhere. She wondered if Vader and Amidala had gotten mad at each other and started fighting.

She nervously walked through the large living room. At the end of it, the door that led into the garage was open. She peeked inside and saw her parents battling, behind the two speeders. Each of them was holding a yellow-bladed lightsaber. They were practicing. She watched for a minute, until they stopped.

"Very good," Vader said.

"Thank you," Amidala replied. She looked at the doorway and noticed her daughter. "Come here, Leia."

Leia hesitated. "I'm sorry. I just heard noises..."

"Come here," Vader interrupted.

Leia came over to them. "I thought your lightsabers were red."

"They are," Amidala replied, "and I have one orange one. But these are training sabers. They'll just give you a burn."

She pointed the blade of hers down to the floor, since it was still on, and held it out to Leia. She took it.

Vader gave the saber he was holding to Amidala, and left. Leia would probably be less nervous if he wasn't observing.

"Isn't this kind of a small space?" Leia asked. Since the speeders were in here, they had a little less than half of the garage.

"Yes, but it's important to learn to fight in different situations," her mother replied. "And we don't like to fight outside. You never know if someone is going to ride past the houses and be curious about our lightsabers."

"Oh."

Amidala turned on her saber and touched Leia's with it. Then she slowly moved it closer to her daughter's chest. Leia raised her blade and gently pushed Amidala's away.

Amidala kept making slow movements for a few minutes, until she was sure that Leia was comfortable, then struck at her a little more quickly. Leia blocked her blade almost every time, and when she didn't, she swiftly moved out of the way. Amidala was impressed.

"We will practice tomorrow, if you want," Amidala said. She stepped back and turned her saber off.

"Yes," Leia replied, realizing that she had had fun. She gave the training saber back to her mother.

When they went inside the living room, Amidala glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost noon.

"Would you like to go somewhere and get lunch?" she asked.

"Okay."

-----

Leia went to her bedroom and washed her face, since she had sweated a little while fighting. As she re-applied some makeup powder to her face, she wondered if she had just been making herself upset during the past few days. Her parents had brought her here because they wanted her to be with them, and they had not done anything to seriously hurt her. Neither had Luke and Mara.

_They did take me away from Han_, she remembered.

But Han wasn't her boyfriend. They weren't even close friends. He had lived in the apartment next to her and Luke's, but she had barely talked to him. He had never even said that he liked her.

_He wouldn't have called me yesterday if he didn't_.

She sighed and decided to think about it later.

-----

Vader was waiting by the foot of the stairs. Amidala was probably still getting ready. Leia almost turned around and went back to her room, but Vader had already noticed her. She came down the stairs.

"I want to ask you something, Master," she said.

"What is it?"

"I told you that I overheard you and Lady Amidala talking about making me go to the party to meet Fredrick Piett. You said 'no'. I was just wondering what you meant, if I'm not being rude."

"I do not want to put you with Fredrick," Vader said, "and Amidala agrees with me now."

Leia was glad to hear that.

A minute later, Amidala came downstairs, and they left.


	31. Chapter ThirtyOne

Author's note: The second rewrite of Angel is showing up now. 

Thanks for leaving me reviews on the last chapter, all of them showed up. Also, I've put Next To You on hiatus for a week or two. I know that some of you are reading it, I just want only two stories to update right now.

**Chapter Thirty-One**

"I have to tell you something," Leia said as the speeder stopped outside of a restaurant. Now that she had said that, she could not change her mind.

"What is it?" Amidala asked.

"Han called me yesterday."

"Why?"

"To see if I am alright, I guess."

"What did you tell him?" Vader asked.

"He asked if I was still on Tattooine. I just said no," Leia answered. "I didn't tell him that you are my parents."

"Good," Amidala replied. "We will get you a new comlink. Is this the first time he has called you?"

"Yes." Leia hoped that they were not angry with her. She did not want to hide anything from them, especially after she had enjoyed practice-fighting with her mother earlier. They _were_ trying to become closer with her.

-----

Luke and Mara weren't really going to Admiral Piett's wife's birthday party, since Leia wasn't there to meet Fredrick, and Amidala wasn't going to set her up with him now, anyway. They went to the twins' apartment to get the clothes and some other things there.

Next, they had to go to Han's friend's casino. Leia's speeder was still there. They weren't going to take it, just make sure that she had not left anything in it.

"I bet Wesley will try to sell it after the announcement about you and Leia being second-in-command is made," Mara said quietly as she and Luke approached the casino's entrance. "Someone will pay a lot of money for a speeder that Leia Skywalker used to own."

"If they believe that she owned it," Luke replied.

The entrance of the garage behind the casino was open, so the two of them walked in. Han was there, washing Leia's speeder.

"Hey," he said. "Is Leia here?"

"No," Luke answered. He looked down at the speeder and saw, through the windows, that nothing important was inside.

"Where is she?"

"Trying on wedding gowns," said Mara.

"Right. I don't believe you."

"She will be here later to get her speeder," Luke added.

"Tell her I'll be here for the rest of the day," Han said, although he wondered if she really was coming.

-----

Just in case, he stayed at the casino until midnight. She never showed up. He returned to the _Millenium Falcon_ and got a few hours of sleep.

When he woke up, he called Leia's comlink. He was going back to Naboo to get Chewbacca, and then they were going to Tattooine. She might want to come with them. Even though she had told him that she was not mad at Luke anymore, he wanted to be sure that she was alright.

"Hello?"

"Leia. Where are you?"

She hesitated. "Why?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to come to Naboo with me, and then to Tattooine. Are you on Imperial Center?" Han asked. He didn't ask why she hadn't come to the casino to get her speeder. Luke had probably made that up.

"Han," she said, "I appreciate you taking me to Tattooine the other day, when I was upset, but I've already told you that. You don't need to call me again."

"What? You like me. I know it. And I..."

"I barely know you," Leia interrupted. "Luke and I lived in the apartment next to yours, but we never really became friends, and I have no interest in getting to know you now. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Leia..." Han wondered if she had only said that because Luke or Mara was with her.

"Leave me alone." She turned her comlink off.

----------------

Sorry for the short chapter, the next one will be long.


	32. Chapter ThirtyTwo

**Chapter Thirty-Two**

"Why did you do that?" Darth Amidala asked. She had been sitting on Leia's couch, beside her, when Han called.

"Because it's probably best that I stop talking to him now," she said.

"Are you only doing this so that your father and Luke and I will leave him alone?"

Leia became a little nervous. She was quiet for a moment, then answered, "I do wish you would leave him alone. But I think that you are probably right about him. He isn't the kind of man I should be involved with."

Amidala sensed that she was being honest. "I am glad to hear that. I sense that you are not completely happy about this, but you will meet someone else and forget about him."

She hugged Leia. Leia actually returned the hug. She had recognized Amidala's subtle warning when she said she sensed that her daughter was not completely happy. She was reminding her that she should not try to hide anything. But Leia wasn't going to.

---------

"I am glad that this is finally over," Amidala said as Vader got into bed beside her.

"Do you think that it is?" he asked.

"Yes. I asked if she only did this to protect Han, and she said no. She wasn't lying."

"Good."

Amidala looked at him for a moment, thinking of the first time they snuck into Beru and Owen's house to visit the twins. It was the day after she returned to Vader, and the first time he saw their children. He concealed his presence and had to hold onto Amidala to hide her, too, since she had not learned that yet. He also used a mind trick to make the babysitter, Beru's seventeen-year-old cousin, go to sleep while they went to babies' room.

Neither of them blamed the other for not being able to raise Leia and Luke.

Amidala thought that she should have gone with her husband right away. If she hadn't threatened to leave him and made him choke her, she wouldn't have passed out and then woken up when Obi-wan was taking her back onto the ship.

Vader thought that he should have taken Amidala and left Mustafar immediately, instead of staying and wasting his time fighting Obi-wan. He had laid in the dirt, near the edge of the lava, and a few small globs of lava spit onto his back. He pretended that he couldn't stand up, so Obi-wan would think that he had been injured when he fell from his jump in the air.

On the day that Amidala came back, the two of them talked, and decided that letting Owen and Beru raised the twins - for now - would be best, to keep them away from the Emperor, Yoda, and Obi-wan. Amidala came up with the idea of capturing Luke or Leia one day and making them a spy.

"Do you want to leave Han alone?" she asked.

"As long as he does not come near us," Vader said. "Unless he bothers Leia, there is no need to spend time tracking him down. I want Luke to start training Leia and Mara."

"I agree." Amidala did not like Han, but she had just started to become close with Leia, and she did not want to mess that up.

She moved closer to Vader, and pressed her mouth against his as he slid his arms around her.

----------

One week later, Han Solo stood in the living room of his apartment, looking at today's issue of Naboo News. He read about Darth Vader being the new ruler of the Empire, and his children, Luke and Leia Skywalker, being the second-in-commands. The article also said that Luke had a wife, Mara Jade Skywalker, but did not say anything about Leia being with anyone.

Han understood why Leia had not told him that Vader was her father - she was probably scared to. He wouldn't have cared, but now he had another problem. Even if he did get Leia to talk to him again, the two of them would have to make her parents tolerate him.

And now, he wondered if she was really worth that trouble. He tried, and she said that she was not interested in becoming closer with him. It was best to forget her.

----------

"I want to go," Leia said. She and her parents were eating dinner. Luke and Mara had moved into the house in the distance, on the right of theirs.

Earlier, when she entered the private chambers on the _Executor_, there was an invitation to Tanya Piett's wedding sitting on the table in the lounge room. She picked it up, thinking of Tanya's brother, Fredrick. Even though Amidala had changed her mind about trying to set Leia up with him, she _had_ liked him enough to consider doing it. Leia wanted to meet him.

"You do?" Amidala asked.

"If it's alright with you."

Amidala looked at Vader.

"Luke and Mara will go with you," he said. He did not want her to go anywhere by herself, since Luke had only been training her for a week.

"Thank you, Father," she replied. She had started calling him that a couple of days ago.


	33. Chapter ThirtyThree

**Chapter Thirty-Three**

When Leia came out of her room the next morning, Amidala was in the hallway.

"Your father wants to practice with you," she said, "in the basement."

Leia was a little nervous. She had only been practicing with her mother and Mara.

"Alright," she said.

Amidala sensed that she was uneasy. Even though Leia had started calling Vader "Father", she seemed to only be doing it because he wanted her to. They had not become closer during the last week. Amidala thought it was because the family had been busy going to a few bases, so that all of the officers could see the twins and Mara.

* * *

Almost all of the basement was empty. The weight-lifting equipment that Vader and Luke used was on one side, but the large remaining space was enough to comfortably fight in. 

"Good morning," Leia said quietly. "Mother said that you wanted to practice."

"Yes. How is your knee?" Vader asked, giving her one of the training sabers he was holding.

"Fine. It doesn't hurt," she answered. She had fallen yesterday while practicing with Amidala in the garage.

They both turned their sabers on. Vader struck at Leia slowly at first, since she had never fought with him before. Of course, she would have to learn not to be intimidated by every big, strong opponent she faced.

After fifteen minutes, they stopped, since Leia was leaving for Imperial Center with Mara and Luke in an hour.

"Very good," Vader told her.

"Thank you," she replied. She liked getting praise from him.

* * *

Mara Jade had sold her ship a few days ago, before everyone knew that she was Luke Skywalker's wife, and Vader and Amidala gave her a new one as a wedding present. It was a little bigger, and there was a bedroom and a compartment for a speeder in the back. 

"I bet people are wondering why your last name is Skywalker," Mara said to the twins as the ship left Yavin Three.

"One of our agents told the newspapers that Skywalker is Luke's middle name," Leia said, "and that he's using it so that there won't be two 'Lord Vaders'. I'm also using it because the officers sometimes call my mother 'Lady Vader', so it would be confusing to have two 'Lady Vaders'."

"Oh. I kind of like the name Ben, if we ever have a son," Mara replied.

"No," Luke told her.

"Why not?"

"Ben is Obi-wan Kenobi's nickname. Where did you get it from?"

"I know that my parents liked the name Ben for a boy," answered Mara.

"I like my parents' disguise names - Jacen and Jaina," Leia said. She also liked the name Anakin, but her family wouldn't be pleased if she named her son that.

* * *

Tanya's wedding was inside the Pietts' mansion, in a large room on the second floor. There were about twenty or thirty other guests. Leia, Luke, and Mara sat in the second row, behind Fredrick, but Leia did not get a chance to talk to him yet. 

Afterward, everyone went downstairs to the ballroom. Luke, Leia, and Mara stayed together in one corner. A few people smiled nervously at them, but didn't come over. Finally, Admiral Piett, his wife, and Fredrick approached them.

"I am glad you could come, Lord Skywalker," Piett said to Luke.

Fredrick looked at Leia. "Your Highness, can I ask if were you at a restaurant on Yavin Three the other night?"

"Yes, I was," she answered. Then she remembered her parents, and added, "I was with two of my friends."

"Fredrick, would you like to dance with Leia?" Mara asked.

"Mara," Leia said softly.

Admiral Piett and his wife left them and went to talk to a Twi'lek woman in a light blue dress.

"If you would like to, Your Highness," Fredrick said, although he was probably just trying to avoid making her mad.

She didn't say anything. She looked at the room's open archway. Han had just entered. She had to admit that she was impressed by the black pants and long-sleeved black shirt he was wearing. So, he did own a few formal clothes.

Mara touched Luke's arm. "He's here."

Fredrick turned and saw Han, then said, "That's my friend, Han Solo. Excuse me."

He went over to him.

"Let's go," Mara said quietly.

"No," Leia whispered. "Please. I don't want him to think that he scares me."

Luke thought she made a good point. "Alright, but you are staying beside me."

"Okay."


	34. Chapter ThirtyFour

**Chapter Thirty-Four**

"Do you think that Owen and Beru even want to talk to the twins?" Darth Amidala asked. She was sitting at the dining room table, writing a letter to the Lars. It told them not to try to contact Luke, Leia, Mara, or come near them.

"Perhaps, if they think that we forced them to join us," Vader said.

"We did, actually."

"No. Luke believed us when we told him that we were his parents, and he was glad to be our apprentice. And you have seen how Leia wanted to please us, even before she knew everything."

Amidala nodded. She looked at the letter for a moment. "Do you think we should send this to my parents, too? And Sola and Darred?"

"If you want," Vader answered, standing behind her chair. He stroked her neck once.

"I don't think it's necessary, unless they bother us," she said.

She thought it was her family's own fault that they were not close with her anymore. They had decided to avoid her and Vader. A few days after the twins were born, Sola and Darred called her and offered to take her somewhere, where Vader wouldn't find her, and buy her a house. When she told them that Vader wanted to talk to them, Darred turned the comlink off without saying anything else.

* * *

Han stayed on the other side of the room. He stood near one of the white couches with Fredrick and a few of their friends - Leesa, the _Devastator's_ captain's daughter, her husband, and the _Executor'_s captain's twin sons. Han thought Leia must be shocked to see that he knew so many upper-class people. 

But he thought she was gorgeous. Her dress was white with a few pink flower designs. Even though he had decided to forget about her, he glanced at her whenever he was sure that her brother and Mara weren't looking.

He felt a little sorry for her when he noticed that she spent the whole time in the corner with Mara and Luke. Tanya Piett and her new husband went over to them, but probably just because they had to thank them for coming to the wedding.

* * *

"Are we going to tell your parents that Han was there?" Mara asked later. The three of them were in the ship's bedroom. 

"I don't want to," Leia said. She sat down on one of the two mattresses on the floor.

"Why? Do you still like him?"

Leia reached for the white blanket at the end of her mattress. "If we tell them, they might be suspicious of me. And I just started getting close to them. I don't want to ruin that."

Luke noticed that she hadn't actually answered Mara's second question, but he didn't say anything.

* * *

Han saw her a month later. One evening, he took his speeder bike out to the trees behind his apartment building. Beyond them was a large meadow. It wasn't a huge area, but it was big enough for one person to ride comfortably in. He practiced maneuvers and tricks here. 

He saw a fire on the other side of the meadow, where more woods started. A hooded figure stood up and walked around to the other side of it, then sat down again. They were probably a tourist or camper who had gotten lost. But Han rode over there anyway.

When he was closer, he saw that it seemed to be a girl, but he didn't realize that she was Leia until she took the hood of the black cloak off. He stopped the speeder bike a few feet away from the fire.

"What brings you to Naboo?" he asked, without getting off the bike. Her parents or Luke and Mara were had to be here. They wouldn't have left her alone near a forest when the sun was setting. It was also cold outside. There were a few patches of snow on the ground, and there were supposed to be two to three more inches by morning.

"Go away," she said.

"Leia..."

"I'm giving you five seconds before I choke you."

Han ignored the threat. "Are you by yourself?"

"Go away!" she told him again.

"So you _are_ by yourself," he said. He hesitated, then got off of the speeder bike. "Leia, come on - can you think of a reason to be angry with me? No. You're only acting this way because your parents want you to."

She looked around, seeing a small rock nearby, and picked it up and threw it at him. He moved out of the way. It hit his bike, but didn't make a scratch.

"You can stay at my apartment tonight," he offered. "Tomorrow I'll take you wherever you need to go."

"No," she said.

"Leia, it's going to snow. Come on," Han said firmly.

She sighed. "Fine. I guess you would like a chance to tell your friends that a girl actually talked to you."

He ignored her. He walked over to the campfire and kicked some dirt and snow onto it. Once it was out, they got on the bike and left.


	35. Chapter ThirtyFive

**Chapter Thirty-Five**

Leia wore her hood over her head, even though she and Han were just riding back to the building, and she kept it on as they went up to the second floor, where his apartment was. She did not want anyone to recognize her.

"There are two bedrooms," Han said when they were inside.

Leia took the hood off and looked around. She was still a little surprised that he could afford a two-bedroom apartment anywhere in Theed, but she saw that the place was a little bare. The living room had nothing except one couch, in front of the viewing screen.

"Are you hungry?" Han asked.

"Yes," Leia answered. She didn't want to accept more of his help, but she hadn't eaten since she left Luke and Mara's ship earlier. "Where is Chewbacca?"

"On Kashyyk. He'll be back in a few days. What happened to you? Did you get lost?"

"No," Leia said as they walked into the kitchen and dining area.

"Are you here by yourself?"

"No. Luke and Mara are here," Leia said again, without giving any details. She took off her cloak. Underneath, she was wearing black pants and a long-sleeved red shirt.

"Where are they?"

"I'm not telling you."

Han didn't ask her again. She sat down at the table, and they didn't talk as he cooked. When he brought the two plates of fish over, she studied hers for a moment.

"It's not poisoned or drugged or anything," he told her.

She sensed that she wasn't lying. She cut a piece of hers and tried it.

"It's...decent," she said. Actually, it was delicious.

"Will you at least tell me if you came here to look for me?" Han asked.

"We didn't," Leia replied. She hesitated, then finally explained, "Luke and Mara sent me to watch someone - no one that you know - and I was going to stay in the woods for the night."

"So they don't think you're missing?"

"No. I don't have to meet them until tomorrow."

"Are you going to tell them that you stayed with me?"

"I don't know," said Leia. As much as she didn't want to hide anything from her family, she wondered if she really _had_ to tell them. Luke and Mara were not expecting her until tomorrow evening, so she could easily leave Han's place in the morning without them ever knowing that she had spent the night there. But of course, if they - and her parents - found out later, they would be angry.

Han looked at her. "I thought you didn't care about me."

"I _don't_. I'm worried about my parents being mad at me."

"What's the big deal? I offered to let you stay here tonight. It would have been stupid for you stay out there in the cold, when it's going to snow more."

"I am a Sith apprentice," Leia said. "I am learning to deal with all kinds of situations. I shouldn't have come here."

"Don't go," Han told her. "If you tell your parents, aren't you already going to be in trouble for accepting my help at first, even if you do leave? You might as well stay."

She had to admit that he was right.

* * *

"I'm worried about her," Mara said. She pulled the blanket up over her and Luke, and snuggled close to him.

He kissed her neck. "She will be fine. She has been spying for my parents for three years. I doubt this is the first time that she has stayed in the woods by herself."

"I know." Mara thought about how her life had been before she and Leia became friends. She had only cared about the Emperor, and he didn't care about her. If something had happened to her, he would have just found a new Hand.

Luke had told her that it was good that she was his wife, and Leia's friend. It made her more loyal to them and their parents.

* * *

Han's extra bedroom was empty except for a mattress, which was fine with Leia. He gave her a pillow and a blanket.

"Good night," he said.

She went into the room and locked the door behind her.

* * *

Sorry for the short, crappy chapter. The next one will be longer. 


	36. Chapter ThirtySix

**Chapter Thirty-Six**

When Leia woke up the next morning, she stood and went to the bedroom's only window, which faced the woods behind the apartment building. There were now a few more inches of snow on the ground. She wondered if Luke and Mara had decided to look for her last night. Even though she was supposed to be doing this assignment herself, Luke might have changed his mind if he thought that the weather was bad. She was still a new apprentice.

As soon as she left the bedroom, she smelled something cooking. When she entered the kitchen, she saw Han sitting at the table, with a plate of fruit and small, thin nerf steaks.

"Want any?" he asked.

Leia sat down beside him and took one of the steaks. She tore off a piece. It was great. He could be successful at having his own restaurant.

"It's bland," she lied. She ate the rest of it.

"Where are you gonna go?"

"I'm not telling you."

"You should let me take you," Han said. "It would be better than walking through the woods in the snow."

Leia took another one of the nerf steaks. "I don't need anymore of your help."

"Do you remember the way back to Luke and Mara's ship?"

"No," Leia admitted. She paused. "You can give me a ride, if you insist, but I don't know what my brother and Mara will do when they see you."

"Nevermind, then. I'll let you go by yourself."

Leia sighed, irritated. "Han, will you please take me?"

He smiled at her. "See? Was it so hard to say that?"

"Can we go now?"

* * *

They started by riding back to the meadow, where Han had found Leia yesterday. Leia had her cloak on again and kept the hood over head. Since they were on the speeder bike, she had to hold onto him as they rode, but she didn't lean against him or rest her head on his back.

He stopped the bike for a moment. "Which way did you come from?"

"Just keep going straight ahead," Leia said, sounding a little upset.

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me or we're not going."

Leia sighed. She spoke in a whisper, even though they were near the woods and seemed to be alone. "I didn't find the person that I am supposed to be watching."

"Is your dad gonna be mad at you?" Han asked.

"It wasn't really a big assignment. He just wanted me to practice doing something on my own," Leia said, "but he and my mother will be angry when I tell them that I stayed with you."

"Don't tell them."

"I have to."

"So?" Han started moving the speeder bike, slowly, since they were entering the trees. "You only stayed because it was going to snow. Just tell them that."

"They're going to ask me if I still like you," Leia replied.

He could tell from her voice that she was about to cry. He stopped the bike again.

"Do you?" he asked.

Leia didn't answer. She got off the bike and started to walk away. Han quickly hopped off and grabbed her arm. Her hood was still on, but he saw that a couple of tears had slid down her face.

"Let go of me," she said. She sniffled. She could reach inside her cloak and take out her lightsaber, but he would know that she wouldn't really hurt him.

"Why don't we go to the Millenium Falcon?" Han suggested. "You can use the holograph pad to contact your parents and tell them, and then we'll go somewhere for a few days, so they can calm down."

"No. That will make them more angry. I've already run off with you twice. Just take me to Luke and Mara."

"Alright." Han touched her shoulder. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she answered. She moved closer and hugged him.

* * *

When they reached the clearing where the ship was, Mara and Luke were outside. Han stopped the speeder bike near the edge of the trees.

"Go," Leia said as she got off. "Let me talk to them."

"No," Han told her.

He wasn't going to leave. She sighed. Her brother and Mara were already walking over here.

* * *

Leia came up to them and tried hugging Luke, probably to keep him from attacking Han.

"I didn't find...the person," she said quietly, wanting him to know that she hadn't told Han much about her assignment.

"Why are you with him?"

"He found me in the woods yesterday," she said, "and he told me that it was going to snow. He asked if I wanted to stay at his apartment for the night. I only went because of the weather."

Mara looked at Han. "Get out of here."

"Luke, come on," Leia added. "Can we go?"

The three of them walked back to the ship. Han turned and rode away.

* * *

When Darth Amidala approached the entrance of the _Executor_'s private chambers, Fredrick Piett was there. He had come here a couple of times during the last week to watch his father. He was training to become an officer at the small base on Ord Mantell.

He briefly bowed his head. "My Lady, may I please speak with you for a moment?"

"Yes. What is it?" Amidala asked.

"I was wondering if Lady Skywalker is coming here today. I want to apologize to her."

"Why?"

"I believe she wanted to dance with me at my sister's wedding, but I had to speak to a few people that I knew, and she left by the time I was finished," Fredrick said. "I know it has been a month, but I have been busy."

Amidala looked at him. He was scared of her, of course, but he was facing her. Someone else might have just hidden for a while and hoped that Leia would forget about it.

"She is not here," she said, "but she will be here the day after tomorrow. Can you come back and see her then?"

"Yes, My Lady."


	37. Chapter ThirtySeven

**Chapter Thirty-Seven**

Han was surprised later that evening, when he entered his apartment and found Leia sitting on the couch.

"Hello," she said. "My parents came here to meet Luke and Mara and I. We're going home tomorrow."

"Do they know that you're here?" Han asked.

"Yes."

Han wondered if this was a trick. "They _let_ you come here?"

Leia came over to him and stood on her toes, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck. He leaned down a little and cautiously gave her a short kiss. He was expecting one of her parents or Luke or Mara to suddenly show up.

"Yes," she said again, letting go of him. "I talked with my father last night, and he made a deal with me."

"What is it?"

"First, you have to marry me. I know that we don't know each other very well yet, but he..."

"I don't care," Han interrupted, closing his arms around her. Although he had never thought he would settle down and get married, but he suddenly liked the idea of doing it with Leia. But he was suspicious about the fact that Darth Vader was actually _making_ him marry her.

She smiled. "And one other thing - you have to capture Boba Fett and bring him to the Executor, alive."

"The bounty hunter?"

"You have three days. I told my father that would be easy."

"What happens if I don't catch him?" Han asked.

Leia rested her chin on his chest, looking up at him. "What are you talking about? Just set a blaster on STUN and shoot."

"Yeah..." He wondered if Boba Fett had actually done anything. Maybe Vader just wanted to see if he could successfully complete this task.

"Don't worry about coming to the Executor. The security department has been informed that my parents are expecting you, and that you are allowed to be there."

"Alright." Han leaned down to kiss Leia again. This would most likely be the last time he was able to see her if he didn't capture Fett.

"I would love to stay longer," she said, "but my parents have a reservation at a restaurant. I will see you in a few days."

They kissed one more time. Then she left. Han decided to get started. It would probably take him two days just to find the bounty hunter.

* * *

Mara Jade took a nap the next afternoon, after the family returned home to Yavin Three, and Luke wasn't home when she woke up. She took her speeder over to his parents' house. Even though it was just in the distance, she didn't feel like walking in the cold. 

Vader was in the living room. Mara asked him if Luke was here.

"Yes," he answered. "He is practicing with Leia in the basement."

"Alright." Mara sat down in one of the armchairs. "Since we're alone, could I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"Are you really going to let Han marry Leia?"

"Yes, if he brings Boba Fett to me," Vader answered truthfully. "Leia said that he agreed to it."

"Do you think he can do it?"

"It is possible."

Mara hesitated. "You intentionally gave him a hard assignment so that he can't have Leia?"

"As I said, he can have her if he brings Fett to me," Vader replied. "Mara, do you think that even _she_ seriously believes that he can do it?"

"Yes. She said she told you that she thought it would be easy."

"Exactly. Do you think she will want to marry someone who can't do a task that she thinks is so easy?"

Mara hesitated again. "Don't you feel bad about this at all? I mean...you're toying with her. Han probably won't even _find_ Fett in just three days, and then she won't be able to marry him."

She sensed that her father-in-law was angry now, but he spoke calmly.

"I am not doing this to upset her," he said. "If Han captures Fett, then she will marry him, and if he does not, she can choose someone else."

Mara wanted to ask why he wouldn't just let Leia marry Han anyway, but she decided not to, since she had already made him mad. She wouldn't be surprised if he and Amidala started asking Fredrick Piett to come to the _Executor_ all the time, so that Leia could see him.

"I'm going to go see if she and Luke are done practicing," she said.


	38. Chapter ThirtyEight

**Chapter Thirty-Eight**

Leia didn't go to the _Executor_ the next day, because she was tired after her trip to Naboo. She gave Mara Jade a message for Fredrick Piett - she appreciated his apology for not dancing with her at Tanya's wedding, and she wished him luck at the Ord Mantell base.

Amidala stayed at home with her. While they ate breakfast, they looked at a few catalogs of wedding dresses.

"I like this one," Leia said.

Amidala took the magazine from her and looked at the picture. It was the same dress that Padmé had worn when she married Anakin, but with a different veil.

"No," she replied. "It's cold outside now. Don't you want to wear something that will keep you warm?"

"The wedding is going to be inside."

"Still..."

* * *

Han was lucky. The first place he had gone to was Tattooine, to Mos Espa, because he had seen Boba Fett there a couple of times before. Today, he was in Mos Eisley. 

The bounty hunter was in the fourth bar that he looked in. He was probably there to watch someone, since he wasn't going to take off his helmet to drink anything. Han wondered if Darth Vader had told him that someone was going to try to capture him. That wouldn't be surprising. But if Vader had done that, he would be impressed when Han was able to catch Fett anyway.

* * *

That afternoon, Leia was sitting on her bed, looking at her laptop computer, when there was a knock on the door. 

"Come in," she said.

Mara came him. Prince, who had been curled up near Leia, hopped off of the bed and walked over to her. She picked the cat up and scratched his neck, then set him down.

"I gave Fredrick your message," she told Leia, sitting down beside her. On the laptop screen was a Holonet page with a wedding dress.

"Thank you," Leia replied. "This is the dress I ordered."

"I like it," Mara said, feeling sad.

Her sister-in-law sensed it. "What is wrong?"

"Well..." Mara hesitated. Vader hadn't told her not to mention their conversation yesterday, but it would be best if she didn't. "Don't you think that you are getting excited too soon?"

"No." Leia closed the laptop and set it aside. "Han is going to bring Fett to my parents tomorrow."

"_If_ he captures him."

"Oh. I knew it."

"What?"

"You and Luke still don't like him."

"_We_ don't? Do you think that your parents do?" Mara asked. "Think about it. Your father wants Han to find Fett and bring him to the Executor in just three days. Even you or Luke or I - or all three of us together - couldn't do that without _any_ clues about where the person we were tracking might be. Isn't this suspicious?"

Leia missed her point. "This is because Han isn't Force-sensitive, isn't it?"

"It has nothing to do with that. I just think that your father might--"

"He might be trying to be nice to me," Leia interrupted.

Mara gave up. She had better leave. She was going to be in trouble later if Leia told Vader what she had said.

"I'm sorry." She stood up. "I should go. Luke and I are going to the lake."

Leia didn't say anything else.

* * *

Vader found Amidala in their bedroom's refresher, in the bathtub. He knelt beside it, and she sat up so that she could kiss him. 

After their lips parted, she said, "Leia chose a wedding dress."

She was glad that her daughter had found another one that she liked, not the one that was the same as the dress that Padmé had worn at her and Anakin's wedding. But now she felt that she had been making too big of a deal out of it. She shouldn't let a dress bother her.

"Good," Vader replied.

Amidala sighed. "So...we are really letting her marry Han."

"We do not have to worry about that. He is not going to find and capture Fett by tomorrow."

"I don't think he will, either. I feel like we are knowingly hurting Leia."

Vader wondered if his wife had been talking to Mara. "We are not. I said that I was making a deal with her. She understands that if Han does not bring Fett to me, he cannot marry her."

"I don't think she does, or else she wouldn't be so excited already."

"Then this will be good for her. She will learn the consequences of being excited ahead of time."

"I agree with you," said Amidala. He made a good point. Perhaps it was a little harsh, but they knew that Leia did not want her training to be easy just because her parents and brother were teaching her.

Amidala moved over to the other end of the tub and pulled the plug, then stood and got out. Vader handed her a towel.

"Thank you," she said. "Do you want to go down to the basement and practice-fight?"

"Yes."

* * *

When they left their bedroom, they both sensed that Leia was very upset. Amidala went over to her door and knocked, then just opened it. Leia was sitting on her bed, crying. 

"What is it?" Amidala asked. She sat down beside her and hugged her.

"Han called my comlink," she answered, "and told me that he almost had Boba Fett, but he escaped and left Tattooine. And something is wrong with the Millenium Falcon, and Han can't fix it and find Boba Fett by tomorrow."

"Tell him to come to the Executor when it is repaired," Vader said.

Leia looked at him. "Can he still marry me?"

"If he agrees to spy for us."

Amidala smiled and kissed Leia's forehead. She supposed that Han wasn't the worst person for her daughter to marry.

"He will," Leia said.

* * *

Han did agree to work for them. Chewbacca didn't have to, but he couldn't participate in any smuggling or bounty-hunting. 

Two days later, everyone except Han sensed that Mara Jade was pregnant. The baby was a boy. She wanted to name him Ben, since that was the name that her real parents had liked for a boy. Luke didn't like being reminded of Obi-wan Kenobi, but Mara pointed out that naming the baby Ben was a way of showing that they didn't let Obi-wan bother them.

Leia and Han got married a week later, in a vacation house that Vader and Amidala had bought in the Lake Country on Naboo.

- The End -

**Author's note: **Thanks for reading this and for all of your reviews. I might not read reviews as often, because of some of the mean comments I've gotten on other stories. I know that I don't get them all the time, and I've said this before, but there's a difference between a helpful review and mean comments. Also, I write these for fun. I am not trying to become a professional author. 

Anyway, I'll stop now, I know that we aren't supposed to use chapters for rants. My other current story is Angel, Second Rewrite. I'm going to finish on my stories that are on hiatus, and there's one that I want to do a re-write of. I probably won't upload any new stories until they're completely finished.


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